Ghanecare Disseminates Research Findings

Global Hand on Natural Environmental Care (GHANECare), a non-governmental organization which seeks to promote and protect women, children and youth rights, has called for a nationwide research on factors contributing to TB Low Case Detection in Ghana.

Richard Kuunaah, Executive Director of GHANECare, said GHANECare would need the support of the government of Ghana and donor agencies to undertake such an exercise so as to establish a national representation on TB case detection.

Mr Kuunaah was delivering the welcome address at a stakeholders' meeting to launch the findings of a research on Low Tuberculosis (TB) Case detection carried out within the Atebubu-Amantin District.

The study was conducted by Messrs. Richard Kuunaah and Wonder Kwabolar Kponor, both from the Faculty of Public Health and Allied Sciences of the Catholic University College of Ghana in Sunyani to find answers to questions why the District could not meet its target over the years.

In 2011, the District was supposed to detect 104 TB cases per 100,000, but the District detected only twenty nine (29) while in 2012, the Ministry of Health reviewed the target to two hundred and thirty-six (236) per the same population, but only twenty five (25) cases were detected for the year. In 2013, only 29 cases were detected and in 2014 and 2015, the case detection was 42 and 52 respectively--meaning that the District has a deficit of 875 TB cases from 2011 to even though as at April this year the District has recorded nine (9) TB related deaths, quoting from statistics collated from 2015.

Mr. Kuunaah said the research work revealed that majority of the people who are undergoing TB treatment are of ages above 35 years amounting to 54.3% of patients, a situation, he said, should be of a public health concern.

He, therefore, urged laboratory technologists and pharmacists to investigate further into the BCG vaccine and immunization policy because "we are of the view that the introduction of the BCG at birth might have some influence".

It came up that the lack of a technician to manage an x-ray machine and the breakdown of a Gen-Xpert machine immediately after installation at the Atebubu government hospital are two significant factors militating against high case detections in the District.

Mr. Albert Henyo a lecturer at the Catholic University College who deputized for the Vice Chancellor of the university promised to take the issue of the x-ray machine up with the health service directorate in Sunyani for a possible solution.

Present at the ceremony was Mr. Emmanuel Kwang, a lecturer in public health at the same university who supervised the study.

Source: ISD (Daniel Oduro-Steward)

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