Private practitioner’s active role can help arrest TB rate

For 2015, out of the 14.5 lakh TB cases detected in India, 80,500 were from Tamil Nadu, says Dr Srinivas MD, Prof & Head, Department of Epidemiology, TN Dr MGR Medical University. He adds, “When we talk about TB, it is neither about diagnosis nor treatment. It is more of a social problem. The state has a robust public health infrastructure that is successfully identifying and notifying the disease, apart from following up and ensuring adherence and cure.”

However, Dr Srinivas adds that a large section of them being diagnosed in the private sector, there is a gap between the cases notified and the cases detected. “Still about 50 to 60 per cent of them turn to private practitioners for diagnosis and treatment. The disease is notifiable since 2012, but the protocol is only slowly catching up among private practitioners. Among the numbers notified, a large chunk is from the public facilities,” he says. 

He also points out that 2015 saw as many as 10,000 cases being reported from the private practise in the state. “It will take some time for the private practitioners to ensure 100% notification from the sector.” 

Dr M Subramanian, former national working group member of the Indian Medical Association, who led the programme for two years involving private practitioners in TB care in Tamil Nadu. However, the project stands defunct now. He says, “The disease is seen among across all income groups because of overcrowded public places and lack of cough etiquettes among public. We continue to disseminate education programme across the state on hand hygiene and cough etiquette. We are also getting private practitioners to report the cases.”