Combating TB Worldwide: Red Cross Partners for Progress

Written by Bonnie Gillespie , Staff Writer, Redcross.org

Tuesday, October 07, 2003 — In a nation like the United States where vaccinations are commonplace and medications readily accessible, it is difficult to imagine that a treatable, curable disease claims two million lives globally each year. But tuberculosis (TB) does. Eight million new TB cases are reported annually, and the developing world is hit hardest, where 95 percent of TB cases occur.

After years of decline, the number of TB sufferers is now on the rise, and the American Red Cross and its partners are strengthening efforts to combat TB internationally, gathering last week in Washington, D.C. to discuss the challenges and successes of present TB programming.

“TB experts were able to give presentations on lessons learned from the field,” said Sujata Ram with the International Services Department of the American Red Cross. “It was part of the CORE (Child Survival Collaborations and Resource Group) network’s working group for TB. “

“Everyone was there because we want to expand or enhance our programs. New private volunteer organizations were also in attendance to learn from more experienced organizations,” Ram added.

As a partner in the Stop TB initiative launched by the World Health Organization (WHO) in 1993 and other similar programs, the American Red Cross works closely with the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) and other Red Cross National Societies and humanitarian organizations to help control the TB epidemic.

“TB control is traditionally a government program, but in recent years WHO and other international organizations like PAHO are encouraging private volunteer organizations to get more involved in working on TB control at community level,” said Ram. “Social mobilization and advocacy at the community level are the focus areas of American Red Cross activities.”

Collaborative pilot projects have shown the effectiveness of teamwork targeting regions such as Eastern Europe with escalating TB epidemics, yet such programs have also revealed an urgent need to ramp up activities to have a greater impact on TB worldwide. The widening HIV/AIDS epidemic attributes as well to the increasing number of TB cases.

Early detection of the disease is the most effective means of breaking TB’s chain of transmission, in addition to ensuring effective treatment of patients. The WHO and its partners recommend Directly Observed Treatment, Short-course (DOTS) for TB patients, requiring six months of daily antibiotic therapy and costing as little as $11 per patient.

However, controlling TB requires a comprehensive health response, not just a medical regimen. Education, early detection, bacterial testing and social support to patients are among the many factors involved in controlling the disease. Together with national ministries of health, the Red Cross, the WHO and partner agencies bring together the diversity of experience and knowledge necessary to tackle the various facets of the TB epidemic.

“The American Red Cross has been working in TB control for a long time and in technical meetings like last week’s, we are able to transfer knowledge about existing community-based practices,” said Ram. “We’re able to share our ‘lessons learned’ and get into specifics of program implementation and management.”

With successful programs such as the Aral Sea Food Aid and Nutrition Project for Tuberculosis Patients, the American Red Cross has spearheaded international efforts to improve the health of TB patients.

Ecological decline in areas targeted by the project, like Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan, contributed to nutritional deficiencies and weakened immune systems among residents, leading to a dramatic rise in TB cases.

By providing fortified food parcels, including wheat, flour, rice and vegetable oil, the American Red Cross facilitated improved nutritional status and the success of treatment programs like DOTS. TB patients are given food parcels as an incentive to comply with daily treatment schedules and complete the full dose of drugs.

As efforts to battle the spread of TB continue, the American Red Cross and its partners are committed to widening the scope of collaboration, while implementing short-term and long-term measures necessary to control and eventually eliminate TB as a public health problem in the world.

What You Can Do to Help

To continue supporting the Red Cross and its partners in the fight against TB around the world, the American Red Cross needs resources to expand its programs and initiatives. Donations to the International Response Fund can be mailed to your local Red Cross Chapter or to the American Red Cross, P.O. Box 37243, Washington, DC 20013 or by visiting our secure online donation page .

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