Mission to make two Dhenkanal blocks TB free

DHENKANAL: With a mission to make Kamakshyanagar and Gondia TB free, the district administration has launched a special drive to check the spread of the disease in the blocks.

Adopting a door-to-door approach, the administration has deployed health personnel to reach out to the community and screen people as well as provide treatment at their doorsteps.  

Earlier, people with TB were not detected until they came to the hospitals and their sputum was tested.

Under the drive now, sputum samples are collected by a team comprising ASHA workers and trained staff led by a medical officer from rural areas after screening of suspected cases. They are also educating people to recognise the early signs and report for treatment.

Source said, the number of people suffering from TB in the district has gone up to 1,144 in 2018 against 1,136 the previous year. Of the 1,144 TB patients, 14 were tested HIV positive. Most of the patients are from remote and inaccessible villages of the district. Every year, 1,000 to 1,200 people test positive for TB patients in the district. Most of the patients are from the tribal-dominated Kankadahada and backward Parjang blocks.  

District TB Officer Dr B Nanda said no deaths due to TB have been reported from the district in the last few years. Besides treatment, Rs 500 to Rs 1,000 is credited to the patients’ accounts under National Poshan Yojana to take care of their nutrition.

The district administration has constituted a TB forum and its first meeting was held under the chairmanship of Additional District Magistrate Purnachandra Mishra on Saturday.