Efforts to manage tuberculosis patients from the root

Staff at Huong Son Ward Health Station (Thai Nguyen City) monitor tuberculosis patients using questionnaires to capture patients' compliance with taking medication at home.

Act early, prevent at the root

For the past 5 years, Thai Nguyen City Medical Center and Thai Nguyen Lung Hospital have successfully implemented the “2X” strategy (X-ray and Xpert test) in 32/32 communes and wards. The goal is to detect early TB cases and latent TB in the community - a key factor in breaking the chain of infection.

From 2020 to present, 2,652/2,680 high-risk subjects have been screened (reaching a rate of 98.9%). Thereby, 48 cases with bacteriological evidence were detected and 287 patients were treated for latent tuberculosis. All patients were managed and treated systematically according to the professional guidelines of the Ministry of Health .

Along with detection, management and treatment supervision in the community are always focused on by medical facilities in the city.

Dr. Phan Bich Hoa, Deputy Director of the City Medical Center: Tuberculosis patients are closely monitored from taking the right dose of medication, following the right regimen, to performing regular tests. People living with patients are also advised to take precautions and be carefully screened.

In Son Cam commune, Dr. Pham Thi Thu Hang shared: “We regularly screen for cases of prolonged cough and phlegm. Each year, the commune health station manages 10-14 tuberculosis patients. The station staff directly supervises daily medication, treats people exposed to the source of infection, and provides appropriate nutritional guidance.” Thanks to this, for many consecutive years, the commune has recorded only one case of tuberculosis relapse.

In 2024, Thai Nguyen City detected 191 cases of all forms of tuberculosis, of which 116 cases had bacteriological evidence. In particular, 11 cases of drug-resistant tuberculosis were closely monitored at home, in coordination between the city level and central specialized hospitals.

Treatment results showed that 100% of patients with bacteriological evidence were cured; the treatment completion rate was 98.4%. There were only 2 cases lost to follow-up - a very small number compared to the overall number.

Screening for people at high risk of tuberculosis at the facility is very important, helping to detect tuberculosis early (illustrative photo).

Reduce stigma, raise awareness

Understanding that tuberculosis is not only a medical battle but also a social issue, Thai Nguyen City Medical Center has actively carried out communication activities on the occasion of World Tuberculosis Day on March 24 every year, as well as during examinations and drug distribution at commune and ward health stations for people at risk of tuberculosis.

This year, the theme of World Tuberculosis Day is “Vietnam commits, invests, and acts to end tuberculosis”, showing strong determination from the central to local levels.

With the messages given, such as: "Replace stigma - with encouragement", "Latent TB - no cough, no fever - remember not to be subjective!" or "Right medicine - right dose - right time - TB will be cured!"... have been widely spread in the community, contributing to reducing stigma and increasing cooperation from the people.

Tuberculosis prevention work in Thai Nguyen City has been and is being implemented in the spirit of “Science - Nation - Mass”. Each grassroots health worker is a “shield” protecting the community from tuberculosis. They are not only treatment guides, but also inspirers, raise awareness and create trust for patients as well as their relatives and the community at large.

At the same time, the application of high technology such as GeneXpert testing in Thai Nguyen province to help detect early and treat properly from the beginning is a key factor in reducing the risk of drug-resistant tuberculosis.

However, on a national scale, the tuberculosis epidemic in Vietnam is still quite severe. According to the National Tuberculosis Control Program Report, Vietnam records about 182,000 new tuberculosis cases each year. Of these, 9,900 cases are drug-resistant tuberculosis and about 11,000 people die from this disease.

Currently, our country ranks 12th in the list of 30 countries with the highest tuberculosis burden in the world and ranks 10th in the number of drug-resistant tuberculosis patients.

More importantly, only about 60% of TB cases in the community are detected. The number of cases with unknown potential sources of infection creates major challenges in disease control.

Therefore, it is necessary for the health sector to further participate in including tuberculosis in the list of screening at medical facilities and clinics, as well as in the list of annual health check-ups at agencies.

In addition, another very important factor is that people with TB need to proactively prevent the infection from spreading to others and everyone should have regular health check-ups to detect TB early. Only then will our country's goal of ending TB by 2030 have a chance to be realized.

The health system of Thai Nguyen City, with what it has done and is doing, is not only protecting the health of nearly hundreds of thousands of people in the area, but is also making an important contribution to the common goal of a Vietnam without tuberculosis.

Source: https://baothainguyen.vn/y-te/202505/no-luc-quan-ly-benh-nhan-lao-tu-goc-2261837/