Ghana Loses 15,000 Of Its Citizens To Tuberculosis Annually
The Deputy Health Minister, Hon. Mahama Asei Seini, has said that tuberculosis remains the leading cause of death in the country.
He was of the view that though COVID-19 is the leading cause of deaths globally, tuberculosis remains Ghana’s deadliest and leading killer.
According to him, the country loses 15,000 citizens to tuberculosis each year, emphasizing the need for the government, as well as everyone else involved in tuberculosis, to invest adequate resources in combating the disease.
“Tuberculosis remains a public health threat in Ghana,” he said. “While COVID-19 is the leading cause of death globally, TB is still the leading cause of death in Ghana, claiming approximately 15, 000 Ghanaians each year.”
The Hon. Minister made this disclosure yesterday during the 2022 launch of tuberculosis celebration in the country, which was held at the Health Ministry.
The Deputy Minister also reiterated that in managing tuberculosis, sometimes one needs ample experience in order to do so and said managers of the disease could draw more experience from the management that went into the COVID-19 treatment.
He however, indicated the government’s commitment to fighting tuberculosis by highlighting some of the measures it has put in place to help eradicate tuberculosis. And he cited an example of the tuberculosis center the government is building speedily at Nsawum in the Eastern Region, which when completed can house lots of tuberculosis patients for the purposes of managing the disease from spreading further among family members.
He also called on the government to do something about patients of the disease who swallow different kinds of anti-biotics on empty stomachs for hours before they are finally made to eat. He said that also remains a challenge and can cause death too.
Meanwhile, the Program Manager for the National TB Control Program, Dr. Yaw Adusi-Poku, has said that the World Health Organization has issued a directive that families of suspected TB disease be screened too, to allow early detection and treatment to prevent further spread.
According to him, this policy or move by the WHO is very necessary because it will help prevent the further spread of the disease among family and community members.
Dr. Adusi revealed that just 50 percent of hospitals in the country have a device that discloses whether or not a person has the disease and prayed that every district should be given a digital X-ray machine, which will go a long way toward making the work of nurses and doctors managing tuberculosis patients much easier.
The celebration of tuberculosis was dully launched by the Deputy Health Minister, ably supported by the Health Minister himself, Dr. Kwaku Agyeman Manu, at the ministry’s conference center yesterday, and the theme for the celebration was “Invest in Tb, save lives”.
Source: Yaa Amoakowaa Yeboah
