Tuberculosis (TB) has been a leading epidemic in the South-East Asia Region in the last few years. India is among the countries that are widely affected by TB. This nation endures the greatest burden of TB globally: approximately 2 million cases are reported yearly in the country, which accounts for roughly twenty percent of the cases globally. According to the survey conducted by the World Health Organization (WHO), nearly forty percent of the Indian society suffers from TB, and approximately 300,000 people die from it each year (USAID, 2015, para. 1). Because of this, the Indian government together with the WHO declared TB a nationwide public health emergency.
Doctor Lankester alerted the public about the TB problem during the third All-India Sanitary Conference, which was held in the district of Madras in 1912 (Kanabus, 2015). He introduced tuberculin testing, making the TB problem clear to the Indian society. In 1946, the Bhore Committee provided a report that estimated that roughly 2.5 million Indians had been suffering from TB at the moment and required immediate care (Kanabus, 2015, para. 11). Concerned with this crisis, the WHO provided health support by offering mass Bacille Calmette-Guerin (BCG) vaccination for an affordable price. In 2006, the Indian government with the aid of the WHO expanded the Revised National TB Control Programme (RNTP) to cover the entire nation (Muniyandi, Rao, Bhat, & Yadav, 2015). Since then, the Indian government has been cooperating with various global health agencies in an attempt to control this epidemic. This paper outlines the TB control program, demonstrating how the program will contribute to the decrease of the TB International/Global Health issue in India.
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The Objectives for the TB Control Program
To manage patients who suffer from tuberculosis is the primary objective of the program under development. This program will guarantee that the medical services required for the assessment, medication, and verification of TB victims are readily accessible in the Indian community (Bloch & Simone, 1995). With the aid of the government, it will directly issue these medication services to various regions within the country.
To identify and control persons infected with Mycobacterium (M) TB is another essential objective of the project. The program utilizes tuberculin-screening tests to monitor high-risk individuals within the community. The routine analysis of these screening tests is important; however, in most cases, doctors should not give screening a predilection over higher priority activities, such as the medication of TB patients and contact assessment (Lei et al., 2015).
To guarantee the alignment of laboratory and diagnostic services with the patient’s medical requirements is another key objective of the program. The chest radiology equipment will always be readily accessible to all patients. In addition, the program will guarantee access to Mycobacteriology Lab services (Barnes, Davies, & Gordon, 2008). It will provide adequate symptomatic services for dealing with patients who may have negative reactions to anti-TB treatment.
The Description of the TB Control Program
The program under development will clearly identify various assignments of responsibility in the health departments (Muniyandi et al., 2015). Regarding assignments, an appointed case manager will be responsible and liable for guaranteeing that each patient is conversant with TB and its medication. The department will hold the manager accountable for ensuring that therapy is continuous and that doctors thoroughly study the patient’s cases. The case manager will ensure that his or her department assigns specific responsibilities to other medical personnel, including physician assistants, social workers, and nurses.
Further, patients will immediately undergo medication as soon as they are diagnosed with TB. The medical personnel, a clinical supervisor in particular, will report cases to relevant health departments. Health agency nurses will visit patients in the emergency room to begin patient education, determine their contacts, make necessary referrals for medical assessments, and identify potential health issues related to the therapy. This procedure will take place within three working days after a doctor diagnoses a patient with TB.
The therapy plan will incorporate the elements of the treatment regimen, an evaluation procedure for toxicity, and an analytic and bacteriologic response. This treatment plan will evaluate the patient’s social, physical, and other therapeutic needs that may influence the progress or completion of remedial treatment (Cowling, Dandona, R., & Dandona, L., 2014).
The program will involve close collaboration with other health institutions to control the TB epidemic. The medical staff will cooperate with various health-care providers from regional clinics, drug-prescription centers, and HIV centers (Cowling et al., 2014). The program will provide clinical services that are acceptable to the community members. The clinic hours will be convenient for all persons: 8.00 am-8:00 pm. This will allow employed people to attend the clinic as well, although they will have to set an appointment with a doctor.
Why the TB Program is Innovative
The program is innovative because it will utilize a referral system for other therapeutic problems. This system will integrate the complete testing of TB patients, which will help determine whether they suffer from other medical complications, such as HIV or diabetes mellitus, which may influence the result of the TB treatment (Lei et al., 2015). Medical consultancy services will be available to all TB patients, including those with drug-resistant TB.
In addition, the program is innovative because it will integrate the duties of all health departments and initiate a thorough monitoring and guaranteeing of the quality of all TB-related activities in the region. The collaboration with other local health-care providers in an attempt to provide efficient treatment is an innovative approach in the health care sphere (Atre, 2015).
The Target Population of the TB Control Program
The TB control program will target roughly 500,000 persons from the majority of regions of India, which is approximately one fourth of the Indian population affected by the disease. The program will target people from all backgrounds, classes, and social groups.
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The Timeline to Implement the TB Control Program
It will take six to twelve months to implement the program. Program developers require adequate time to evaluate the applicable laws, regulations, and health policies to ensure they are aligned with the approved medical and local health practices (Muniyandi et al., 2015). In addition, ample time is required to ensure that there is sufficient staff to administer TB control activities. Moreover, times is needed to create a network of societal groups in India. Thus, six to twelve months will be enough for the program to become operational.
The Approximate Cost of the TB Control Program
The approximate cost of the program is 5 to 7 million US dollars. Since this is a large amount of money, the program aims to seek funding from governmental, local, and private sources. If the program acquires these funds, it will collaborate with local organizations, such as local medical societies, to educate policy makers about regional TB complications (Bloch & Simone, 1995).
The Outcomes of the Program
The provision of contact investigation to health care providers, as well the overall reduction of TB cases in India, will be potentially a significant long-term outcome of the TB control program. The staff will start contact evaluation immediately when the department alerts them of a suspected case of TB. This investigation process will be continuous, and it will help to detect and deal with persons with the TB infection.
On the other hand, staff training and education for health agencies and community members will be a short-term outcome. The staff training will only take place at the time of hiring and routine intervals via a collaborative mechanism (Lei et al., 2015). This approach will help employees maintain an accurate, updated TB awareness, civic health practice, and evaluation expertise.
Conclusion
In conclusion, tuberculosis is a worldwide epidemic. India accounts for the highest number of TB cases. This disease has become a national emergency in India after the recent massive deaths estimated by the government. Because of this, the introduction of the TB control program will help reduce the cases of TB and guarantee improved public health. This program will incorporate a medical plan for clinical service, enhance adherence to therapy, and utilize a referral system for other therapeutic medical complications. Furthermore, the program will guarantee medical consultative services and closely cooperate with local health-care providers in the treatment of TB patients. The Indian government should incorporate the program in the national and regional health agencies. For these medical institutions to care for their patients, doctors should be aware of the many complications and challenges involved in patient therapy. Most predominantly, the hospitals offering services for TB patients should have access to the methods relevant for the diagnosis of TB, such as a tuberculin skin test, chest radiography, HIV test, and drug vulnerability testing. Besides, for an early recognition of TB cases in India, health care agencies should possess relevant knowledge related to the disease to prevent the spreading of the epidemic. Medical institutions with the aid of the government should offer adequate training and education to the members of the public. By keeping these recommendations in mind, the program will help eradicate the affliction of TB.
