As an important health threat, countries are not relenting in their laurel to put it under control.
It is in the news that The Gambia last Friday joined the rest of the globe to mark World TB Day. The day was set aside annually on March 24th to raise awareness about TB and efforts to end the global epidemic, marking the day in 1882 when the bacterium causing TB was discovered.
It is also meant to highlight the considerable progress made in the face of the global challenges as well as to inspire hope and encourage high level leadership, increase investment, faster uptake of new World Health Organization recommendations, among others.
TB is the 13th leading cause of death and the second leading infectious killer after Covid-19 worldwide, according to experts.
According to experts, there has been a steady decline in TB case notification for 2020/21. However, in post covid-19, the case notification has jumped from 2279 cases in 2021 to 2576 cases in 2022. This indeed calls for urgent intervention and collaboration to curb the growing trend.
We thank the Ministry of Health and its partners for the giant strides made in reducing TB cases in the past year. What is even commendable is the fact that in The Gambia diagnosis and treatment of TB are provided free of charge irrespective of one’s nationality.
This is all geared towards ensuring equitable access to prevention and care in line with WHO’s drive towards achieving Universal Health Coverage.
This in turn would save families fortunes that would have been used in the treatment and care of this dreadful disease.
However, we believe that aligning policies and strategies would help make informed decisions in this regard. The disease still remains a major health drawback in The Gambia.
It is also believed that with increased funding for TB prevention, diagnosis and treatment services, the country will surely significantly reduce TB cases and even eliminate it in the country.
It is high time people do away with stigma and discrimination against people with Tuberculosis. Communities need to change their approach towards people suffering from the disease. The magnitude of stigma directed at some of these people has made the case ‘unmanageable’. Also, people suffering from the disease should avail themselves for early diagnosis for timely treatment.