World TB Day

Hundreds of city residents and TB community volunteers joined representatives from the National Department of Health, NCD Provincial Health Authority and key development partners and supporters, in observing the day.

The ‘TB Walk’ started early in the morning at the National Department of Health office and ended at Ela Beach. Key TB stakeholders including the National TB Program and NCDPHA spoke about the importance of the fight against TB and the support needed to protect and safeguard younger generations from this dreaded disease.

In commemoration of the day , the Department of Health with support from WHO called for multi-sectoral investment in TB to end TB in PNG.

In a glance, the Health Department report said Papua New Guinea is among the top 30 countries with high burden of TB and drug-resistant TB globally. PNG reports more than 30,000 TB cases every year and TB continues to be one of the leading cause of illness and death in PNG. 

Speaking at the TB expo in Port Moresby today, he stressed that it was everyone’s responsibility to equip themselves with knowledge on this, and to do awareness.

The main message to spread is that TB is curable by medicine offered by a medical doctor and not by a witch doctor.

Sir Puka said the main challenge was the misunderstanding that sorcery causes TB.

He said the government is determined to kick TB out of the country and NCD, which holds almost 25 percent of TB cases in PNG.

TB officer Akita Korua says the purpose of the awareness was to educate the people on TB, a curable disease that can be treated with medication if patients are faithful and complete their medication within 6 - 8 months.

The World TB Day event was launched in Kerema town on Friday with the theme for this year, ‘Leave no one behind’, a call to everyone to take ownership of initiatives to stop TB in Gulf Province.