Ending TB: A long-overdue global priority
The global TB response is at an inflection point. While the toolbox has never been so full of newly approved and near-term innovations in diagnostics, treatment and prevention, progress to achieve TB elimination targets has been slow, with some gains reversed by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Jhpiego combines a strong track record and reputation for working with ministries of health, clients, civil society, communities and local organizations with innovative, cost-effective, person-centered and holistic solutions to address intractable challenges across the TB care continuum, the social determinants of the disease and its impact for individuals and communities. Jhpiego’s years of work in TB, HIV, gender, maternal and newborn health, malaria and other infectious diseases, and its renewed focus on primary health care, immunization and global health security, as well as its experience with differentiated service delivery models, position us well to support our partners to end TB as a global health challenge by 2030.
Ending TB is not a question. It is a must. But it requires thinking and working differently. The TB of today is different from the TB of a century ago and it is different from the TB we will know two years from now. If we as a global community are serious about ending TB, we need to let go of old truths and stalled thinking and embrace new ways to accelerate innovation and equitable access to treatment, prevention and social support for people affected by TB and their communities.
Dr. Silvia Kelbert, Senior Technical Advisor, Jhpiego
Addressing TB is a health equity issue.
Stigma around some of the key drivers of TB, including poverty, undernourishment, poor living and working conditions and HIV infection, impact access to care, treatment and support. On World TB Day 2024, we mounted an awareness campaign that included anti-stigma messaging: “TB Didn’t Stop Them!”
Our Projects
NISHTHA: Transforming Comprehensive Health Care in India
Through the U.S. Agency for International Development-funded NISHTHA project, Jhpiego is supporting the Government of India to provide comprehensive primary health care, including TB services. This work includes engaging TB champions and community members as TB advocates; improving TB case finding through innovative solutions such as artificial intelligence tools to screen for TB through cough sounds; and providing technical support to strengthen the capacity of primary health care teams to deliver drug-sensitive and drug-resistant TB services integrated in the Government of India’s Ayushman Bharat Health and Wellness Centers.
Urban Health Initiative
The Jhpiego-led Urban Health Initiative (UHI), funded by the U.S. Agency for International Development, is addressing drug-sensitive and drug-resistant TB in Afghanistan, with a focus on women, children, and other vulnerable populations. UHI is working with the Ministry of Public Health to improve public and private health service delivery in Kabul, Herat, Jalalabad, Kandahar and Mazar-e-Sharif provinces, including access to primary and secondary health care services, public and private health service quality, and the public’s awareness of health care services and behaviors.
Community and Universal Testing for TB among Contacts
The four-year CUT-TB trial, funded by the European & Developing Countries Clinical Trials Partnership and led by the Aurum Institute, is conducted in Lesotho, South Africa and Tanzania, with Jhpiego leading implementation in Lesotho. CUT-TB is evaluating new contact tracing strategies with the goal of improving case detection and delivering preventive therapy in high- and medium-burden TB settings. Jhpiego’s support also includes collection of data and specimens, arranging and supporting training for staff and overall capacity strengthening.
A Journey Back to Health, with a Family Caregiver
In India, health workers are partnering with families to ensure people with TB get the care they need, from timely treatment to proper rest and nutrition.
Read more.World TB Day
For World TB Day 2024, Jhpiego took to the streets to raise awareness and reduce stigma around TB. Test your knowledge with our country teams!
Yes! We can end TB.
Resources
Global Tuberculosis Report 2023, World Health Organization
The Union Conference on Lung Health
For more information, contact Dr. Silvia Kelbert at Silvia.Kelbert@jhpiego.org.
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