Focus on
 Published in February 2008
NAMIBIA

Winning the War against Tuberculosis

Empty hospital beds - over 90 percent of TB patients are cured

Dr Ikandi is the chief medical officer for the Omaheke region. He looks with satisfaction at the empty beds in the TB ward which were full not so long ago. The cure rate of TB patients is now over 90 percent.

Listen to how training health workers and community members helps to identify and cure TB patients
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Hospital staff did not use to always recognise TB cases, but case detection is now on track with international health standards. In addition, TB patients from rural areas can be discharged from hospital early because each village has someone trained to help them take their medicine.

Half of Dr Ikandi’s TB patients used to stop their treatment before they were cured. Thanks to community supervision now everyone stays the course.



"Together we can fight TB"

Listen to children's choir singing "Together we can fight TB"
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Support is vital to ensure people stay on their medication long after the symptoms have gone, until they are cured of the disease. It requires a good deal of encouragement from medical staff, from community carers and from family members. The children’s choir of the Omaheke hospital sings a song with this clear message.
Dr Ikandi is the chief medical officer for the Omaheke region.