With an aim to accomplish its part of the nationwide ‘TB-Free India’ campaign, the Uttar Pradesh government is gearing up to focus its efforts at the village level to eradicate the Tuberculosis disease.
“The initiative will be implemented on the ground soon with the collective effort of the District Tuberculosis Officer and District Panchayat Raj Officer (DPRO),” the official statement released on August 28 mentioned.
“Principal Secretary Health, Partha Sarathi Sen Sharma, has issued specific guidelines to all Chief Medical Officers and District Tuberculosis Officers (DTOs) including the Director General of Health in this regard. These guidelines are in line with Chief Minister Yogi’s vision to make gram panchayats tuberculosis-free. In addition, meetings will be held at the DTO and DPRO levels to brainstorm on making the panchayats TB-free,” it added.
To make gram panchayats TB-free, the health department will be collaborating closely with the Panchayati Raj Department. The press release mentioned that the employees associated with the campaign from district to block level will be trained to educate village leaders within their scope of work areas.
The grassroot health activists ASHA [Accredited Social Health Activist] workers have been included in the campaign to record information regarding TB patients and locate them within the community and assist with the investigation process.
“They will distribute medicines to TB patients and offer guidance on adhering to the treatment, ensuring its successful completion, and provide nutritional recommendations. Additionally, they will facilitate the registration of bank account information, enabling TB patients to receive Rs 500 monthly to support proper nutrition throughout the course of treatment,” the press release mentioned.
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“At the community level, ANMs [Auxiliary Nurse Midwives] will disseminate information about TB using posters. They will educate people about TB symptoms including a persistent cough, fever lasting two weeks, weight loss, and night sweats. ANMs will also screen women exhibiting these symptoms,” it added. Their responsibilities extend to organising outreach initiatives to assist TB patients and encouraging them to undertake treatment. Efforts to eradicate TB will also be incorporated into the Panchayat Development Plans (PDP).
The press statement quoted Deepa Tyagi, the Director General of Health of informing that the public is being educated about diverse facets of tuberculosis, encompassing symptoms, prevention strategies, dispelling misconceptions, adherence to treatment, screening procedures, and the range of benefits extended by the state government to TB patients, along with the available treatment resources.
Under this process, the Block Development Officer will be expected to send the claims of all eligible gram panchayats aspiring for TB-free status at the block level, along with all essential documents to the District Tuberculosis Officer for validation.
Furthermore, the District TB Team will be delegated to send a list of verified gram panchayats deemed eligible for the TB-free Panchayat status to the District Magistrate.
Based on this activity, the District Magistrates in the state will issue a TB-free panchayat certificate with a one-year validity to the gram panchayats meeting the criteria on World Tuberculosis Day observed on March 24 every year.
