Pandemic and Eliminating Tuberculosis

KOMPAS/WAWAN H PRABOWO

Activists provide counseling to traders at Kramat Jati Market, Jakarta, regarding the commemoration of World Tuberculosis Day on Friday (24/3/2017).

According to the 2018 Global Tuberculosis Report published by the World Health Organization (WHO), two-thirds of the world's tuberculosis (TB) cases are found in eight countries.

India has the most, followed by China, Indonesia, the Philippines, Pakistan, Nigeria, Bangladesh and South Africa. TB is one of the most deadly infectious diseases. The disease is caused by mycobacterium tuberculosis, mostly in the lungs, but it can also found in the bones, lymph nodes, the lining of the lungs, the brain, urinary tract, and reproductive organs. TB is transmitted through the air when people inhale the bacteria in droplets expelled by an infected person who sneezes or coughs.

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According to the WHO, more than 4,100 people die and nearly 30,000 people get sick from TB every day, even though the disease is preventable and treatable.

The Covid-19 pandemic has slowed progress in controlling TB. In 2020, TB deaths increased for the first time in more than a decade. Furthermore, conflicts in Eastern Europe, Africa and the Middle East have exacerbated conditions among vulnerable populations.

The Health Ministry acknowledged that the detection and treatment coverage of TB in Indonesia had declined as a result of the pandemic. In 2019, the ministry recorded 562,000 cases of TB and 67 percent treatment coverage. But by 2021, the number of cases had fallen to 402,502, but so had coverage to 49 percent.

According to the WHO, poverty and marginalization facilitates the transmission of TB, as well as HIV and malaria.

Indonesia has the second highest TB burden in the world, averaging around 845,000 cases per year. The government is committed to eliminating TB by 2030 by reducing TB cases to 65 per every 100,000 people. According to the WHO, poverty and marginalization facilitates the transmission of TB, as well as HIV and malaria.

The majority of people who develop these diseases live in communities that have various problems related to human rights and gender access to health services.

KRISTIAN OKA PRASETYADI

Tuberculosis Poly officer at Sario Manado Health Center, North Sulawesi, Ivonne Paendong shows a stop tuberculosis drug package, Wednesday (18/3/2020). The package of drugs that must be consumed non-stop for six months can be distributed free of charge to patients.

In adopting the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals, the world has committed to ending the epidemics of HIV, tuberculosis and malaria by 2030.

Health equity is crucial to achieving this target. Providing equal access to health services is an important step in addressing inequality. However, equitable health access is not enough on its own. To counter the inequality resulting from poverty, marginalization, and discrimination, governments and stakeholders should prioritize resources and increase health service coverage.

To that end and in marking World Tuberculosis Day on 24 March, themed “Invest to End TB. Save Lives”, the WHO has called on countries to immediately restore access to services that were disrupted by the Covid-19 pandemic for all TB carriers, especially children and adolescents. They should also increase investment in resources, support, treatment and information to combat tuberculosis. Without these, it will be difficult to realize the goal of eliminating TB by 2030. The large number of people who fall ill from TB only burdens and weakens the socioeconomic conditions in the country.

(This article was translated by Hendarsyah Tarmizi).