08 Jul 2021

With COVID-19 now the leading cause of death in the country, other diseases that cause death such as Tuberculosis (TB) have somehow been neglected.

Acting project manager for Tuberculosis and Neglected Tropical Diseases in the Ministry of Health and Wellness, Dr Tuduetso Molefi said there was a 30 per cent reduction in TB case notification in 2020.

Speaking in an interview this week, Dr Molefi attributed the decline to challenges associated with COVID-19. 

She said the pandemic hindered them from reaching the target of screening people for TB. 

She noted that in 2019, they registered 6 800 TB patients and that in 2020 they had a drop of 30 per cent, which was equivalent to not finding about 4 000 people infected with TB.

She urged people with TB symptoms to go for testing rather than attributing all the symptoms to COVID-19.

Dr Molefi said people should not be killed by TB because it was curable. 

She noted that in 2019 they lost seven per cent of their TB patients.

She attributed the loss of TB clientele to COVID-19 movement restrictions. 

She noted that since the outbreak of coronavirus, they had not had a chance to embark on community campaigns.

Dr Molefi also said areas such as Kgalagadi South and Ghanzi had more TB cases than other areas i and that they were lacking behind with TB testing and screening. 

Meanwhile, Dr Molefi said they had also encountered challenges as their TB focal persons were assigned to fight the COVID-19 pandemic, which made it difficult to implement some of their planned activities because of lack of manpower.

She urged people who had a cough, fever or were sweating to test for both TB and COVID-19, noting that both ailments had similar symptoms. 

Dr Molefi also noted that measures put place to prevent COVID-19 were also effective against contracting the virus.

“With masks worn correctly it would assist with reduction of transmission of TB bacteria,” she said. 

She said they would continue to liaise with other stakeholders to ensure that TB messages continued to be shared on different platforms, adding that they also used technology in the fight against TB. Ends