TB still a serious problem in RP

Eight years after the Philippine health system adopted a tuberculosis treatment method considered most effective by the World Health Organization, the disease remains prevalent in the country, claiming an average 75 lives daily.

According to the Department of Health (DOH), TB is still the fourth leading cause of death among Filipinos and ranks sixth among the leading causes of illnesses in the country. In terms of the number of TB cases, the Philippines is seventh worldwide and second in the Western Pacific.

In 1996, the DOH adopted the Directly Observed Treatment Short Course chemotherapy, or DOTS, for TB positives under its National Tuberculosis Program. This method required the participation of a "treatment partner" to monitor the patient’s daily intake of drugs and how he or she responds to treatment.

DOTS is now available in government clinics in 66 of the 77 provinces, as well as a few private health facilities. There are about 3,000 TB diagnostic facilities all over the country.

Although the success of TB treatment significantly improved since the DOTS implementation, figures remain to be a cause of alarm. Aside from 75 TB deaths daily, it is estimated that there are 200 TB positives in every 100,000 Filipinos.

The government has engaged in tie-ups with various agencies and organizations primarily to support the DOTS expansion. ReachOut Foundation International is doing an advocacy campaign through a funding from the US Agency for International Development to raise awareness on the TB problem and erase the stigma associated with the disease.

Part of the efforts also include the adoption early this year of a Comprehensive and Unified Policy for Tuberculosis Control in the Philippines by a multi-sectoral coalition led by the Philippine Coalition Against Tuberculosis.