The state government claimed that with greater involvement of private healthcare providers, the notification of TB cases rose by 38 per cent from 2.96 lakh in 2017 to 4.1 lakh in 2018.
State TB officer Dr Santosh Gupta said that during a sensitisation workshop in Lucknow on Tuesday, notifications from private healthcare providers in the state had improved significantly. “Around 25.6 per cent of total TB cases (1,05,387 out of 4,10,360) were notified by the private sector in 2018 as compared to 19.1 per cent in 2017,” he said.
“With increased notification of TB patients by private players and greater treatment reporting by private doctors, the government can monitor the treatment outcomes among privately-treated patients and ensure their completion,” he said.
Dr Santosh Gupta also spoke about initiatives taken to further strengthen inter-departmental coordination to improve services to TB patients across the state.
The workshop was also addressed by chairperson of State Task Force for Tuberculosis Elimination (UP) Dr Surya Kant, who elaborated the role of medical colleges in TB elimination strategy.
Dr Surya Kant also said that earlier this year, the Medical Council of India mandated that all new medical colleges applying for recognition had to provide free diagnosis and treatment to all TB patients, including those with drug-resistant TB.
Dr Surya Kant also emphasised that the increase in notification could be attributed to Nikshay Poshan Yojana, a direct benefit transfer (DBT) scheme for TB patients. Under the scheme, each patient receives Rs 500 every month for the entire duration of treatment.
Since its launch in April 2018, more than 3,90,298 patients have received benefits under the scheme in Uttar Pradesh, amounting to approximately Rs 81.8 crore.
President-elect of Lucknow Academy of Paediatrics, Dr Shrish Bhatnagar spoke on the role of pediatricians and Indian Academy of Paediatrics in eliminating TB. IAP has recently signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the Central TB Division to conduct 300 workshops for their members across the country to train over 18,000 members and 2,000 government medical officers.