The government is working in collaboration with the Global Fund to build a $1 million modern infectious disease hospital at Nsawam in the Eastern Region.
The objective is to contain the threat of a multi-drug resistant tuberculosis (TB) and other emerging infectious diseases in the country.
It is expected that the facility will be completed by the end of next year.
TB Day celebration
The Minister of Health, Mr Kwaku Agyeman Manu, announced this in a speech read on his behalf by the Director-General of the Ghana Health Service (GHS), Dr Anthony Nsiah-Asare, at the national celebration of the 2017 World TB Day at Tarkwa in the Western Region last Friday.
The theme for the celebration was: “Unite to end TB.” The event was attended by traditional authorities, heads of departments, assembly members and students.
Health sector strategic plans
The Minister of Health indicated that the National TB Control Programme had successfully led the implementation of two health sector strategic plans, 2002-2006 and 2009-2013 and was currently implementing a third plan, 2015-2020, with funding mechanisms from the Global Fund and other sources to fight TB, HIV and malaria.
“So far, the scope of interventions implemented have successful engagement of civil society and private providers, the development of over 113 diagnostic expert machines, digital X-Ray equipment, as well as hearing aids, among others,” the health minister disclosed.
He said the treatment and diagnostic services’ coverage of districts with modern equipment had increased to about 60 per cent of the total number of districts and added that a plan to mobilise resources to expand coverage to the entire country was currently underway.
TB control
Giving an update on TB control in the country, the National TB Programme Manager, Dr Frank Bonsu, recalled that Tarkwa and Obuasi were the epicentre of TB in the 20th century, owing to intense mining activities in those areas.
He said presently, the situation was different, as TB affected every region, district and community, stating that in 2016 the country recorded 14, 632 new TB cases.
He said since 2011, the annual reported cases had been declining, from approximately 16,000 to a little above 14, 000 at present.
“This is not a cause for celebration, because a prevalence survey conducted by the national TB Control Programme in 2013 showed that the TB burden in the country is much higher than previously estimated, indeed four times higher, he admonished.
Dr Bonsu said the national TB treatment success rate was 87 per cent, adding, “We are three-percentage point short of our national treatment success target of 90 per cent.”
However, he said, in spite of technical and logistics challenges in supporting patient care, four regions: Greater Accra, Northern, Western and Brong Ahafo recorded an outstanding above average performance of treatment success of above 90 per cent.
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