Today is World Tuberculosis Day and the disease is one of the most formidable challenges to Nigeria’s healthcare and need to be tackled on multiple awareness.
As Nigeria is one of the countries with the high burden of disease, experts has raised fresh concern on the strain of funding gap in tackling Tuberculosis (TB) calls on the Federal Government to urgently commence plans for effective funding of management and also liaise with relevant Agencies in the Health sector to work out a plan.
Experts also opined that ignorance and the increasing gap in the funding for TB control is leading to over 300,000 undiagnosed TB patients causing threat to the public health.
According to World Health Organization, since 2000 about 54 million lives have been saved, and TB death fell by one- third, but 10 million people still fall ill with Tuberculosis each year, with too many missing out on vital care.
Commenting on the way forward, Taiwo Adedeji a medical practitioner based in Lagos said despite several efforts to address and combat the disease, TB continues to remain a public emergency, especially in Nigeria.
“Commensurate with the theme for this year’s World TB Day 2019 it’s time to end TB, in order not to jeopardize the treatment of the millions of Nigerians government at all levels must continue to work with our international partners to identify alternative sources of funding.”
Adedeji said, public private sector support and implementing intervention will help get a breakthrough in the country’s fight to end Tuberculosis.
Tuberculosis is an infection disease caused by bacteria known as Mycobacterium tuberculosis; the most frequent symptoms include cough of two weeks or more weight loss, night sweat and loss of appetite.
Osagie Ehanire the Minister of State for Health, , said there is a need to bring TB screening and awareness to the grassroots to encourage and educate people on where to get tests done when they suspect the disease especially if the person has been coughing for more than two weeks.
“We need to make people aware of test and treatment center as treatment is free. Nigeria is one of the highest burdened countries. He described the disease as a leading cause of death in the world as 1.6million people died of TB in 2017 alone.”
However, the national Strategic Plan for TB control 2015- 2020 was a call to action for all stakeholders in Nigeria to mount a collective response to the challenges of Nigerians cases in eliminating this life threatening incurable aliment.
There is a need to notify every case and remove stigma associated with the condition through awareness.
“Tuberculosis knowledge in Nigeria is low; it is 25 percent of the populace that have knowledge about TB,” said Itohowo Uko, head of communication and social mobilization, the National Tuberculosis and Leprosy Control Programme (NTBLCP)
“We want people to know what the disease is all about thereby erasing the wrong and misinformed knowledge about the disease,” she said.
ANTHONIA OBOKOH
