TB-control drive begins today

NEW DELHI, Feb 4: The Delhi government will organise a tuberculosis control programme from February 5, Health Minister A.K. Walia announced on Wednesday. He said the campaign will be carried out at the 102 DOTS Directly Observed Treatment Short Course centres in Delhi. There are about one and a half lakh cases of TB in Delhi alone, with nearly 70,000 cases expected to be added every year, the Minister said. Under the programme, which will be formally inaugurated by the Chief Minister on February 5, patients can receive medicines on fixed days every week, at DOTS centres which have been set up in government hospitals in the Capital.

The centres set up under the revised national TB control programme will have to ensure systematic intake of medicines by patients as they have to take medicines in front of the health worker at the centre. The patient will have to be at the centre three days every week to take the medicines, he said. 8220;When the patient does not turn up the health worker goes to his house and gives him the medicines,8221; he said. Under the pilot project the cure rate was 95 per cent.

Walia appealed to all those who had symptoms of the disease to come to the nearest DOTS centre for a check up. The Minister pointed out the disease was curable provided patients took their medicines without stopping in between. The DOTS centres will have to ensure that patients never discontinue their medicines, he said. The centres for their part have to report to 14 chest clinics in different parts of the city.

The DOTS centres are open from 8 a.m. to 12 p.m. on all days except Sundays. The programme aided by the World Bank will provide free diagnosis and medicines to patients.