She said the prevalence of Micro Bacterium Tuberculosis was on a steady rise in the Municipality, comparing reported cases from 2015 to 2017.

Madam Garvin, who was speaking at the commissioning of a Community Health Planning and Services (CHPS) compound at Tokokoe said 153 cases were recorded in 2015, 156 in 2016, and 158 in 2017.

She described the situation as a public health issue and called on various stakeholders to be vigilant and become active ambassadors in the fight against the disease.

Madam Garvin said the disease is highly communicable and appealed to patients and caregivers to employ strict hygienic practices towards preventing its spread.

She said coughs lasting two weeks and above were probable symptoms of the disease, and advised that such conditions should be isolated and reported to the nearest health facility.

Madam Garvin also emphasized the need for an improved diet in fighting the disease.

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Source: GNA

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12 of the inmates have received treatment from the Konfo Anokye Teaching Hospital, and the remaining affected inmates are being quarantined in a special room for the medical team to take care of them.

This is according to the Deputy Ashanti Regional Minister, Elizabeth Agyemang, who has been giving updates on the situation to Citi News.

“The inmates are about 1,850, and about 47 have been affected and because this is a contagious disease, if we don’t take particular care of them, anything can happen in the future.”

This outbreak has been attributed to the over-congestion at he prison. The prison, which was built in 1901 to accommodate only 800 inmates, now houses over 1,800 inmates.

“…they need space. The space is too small. Something that is supposed to take 800 people is now taking about a 1,850 people, which is not good. It is not good for anybody,” Mrs. Agyemang said.

The challenge overcrowding presents to the prison has been highlighted in the past, especially for tuberculosis control.  Tuberculosis cases have risen steadily over the past two years, from 12, 2015, to over 31,000 in 2016.

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By: Philip Nii Lartey/citifmonline.com/Ghana

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Gene Xpert and Digital X-ray equipment have also been installed at the Regional Hospital in Wa to help facilitate screening for the disease faster while training laboratory staff at health facilities.

The measures are to encourage people to patronise health facilities to be diagnosed for the disease, which for the past five years recorded increasing cases in the region.

Dr Winfred Ofosu, Upper West Regional Director of Health Services, made this known when he gave an overview of Tuberculosis situation in the region during a media briefing in Wa to mark this year’s World Tuberculosis Day.

The Day was on the theme: “Unite to end Tuberculosis”, which calls on all partners and stakeholders to unite towards achieving the goal of Tuberculosis elimination by 2035.

Dr Ofosu said the region’s, Tuberculosis case notification stood at 316 cases in 2012, which increased to 328 cases in 2013 and decreased in 2014 to 307 but shot up to 356 cases in 2015.

Within the period, the region recorded 169 positive cases in 2012, but the figure decreased to 156 and 164, cases in 2013 and 2014, but increased to 239 cases in 2015.

Cure rate stood at 68 per cent in 2012, 71 percent in 2013, 72 per cent in 2014 and 60 per cent in 2015.

Treatment success were 83 per cent 2012, and the figure increased to 88 per cent 2013 but fell short to 87 percent and 81 per cent in 2014 and 2015 respectively.

The death rate during the period was 12 per cent in 2012 and in 2013 but recorded a decrease in 2014 by 11.1 per cent and in 2015 it registered an increase of 13.2 percent.

Dr Ofosu said the regional health directorate was working harder to reduce the incidents of Tuberculosis among the people.

He admitted that the disease had remained a major public health concern globally as current efforts to reach, treat and cure everyone who got ill with the disease had not been sufficient though it was curable.

The Regional Health Director said drugs for Tuberculosis treatment were available in all government hospitals and some Mission Hospitals as well as accredited private hospitals and were absolutely free.

“It is not a curse nor a hereditary condition and traditional medicine has not proven to cure Tuberculosis”, he explained and urged people to seek medical treatment when they were diagnosed with the disease.

Dr Ofosu said in 2014, 9.6 million people fell ill with Tuberculosis and of this figure, 1.2 million of them also had HIV, ranking Tuberculosis alongside HIV and AIDS as the leading cause of death worldwide.

He appealed to the media to raise awareness of the disease, informing the public that there is a cure for the disease and treatment is also free, saying: “Tuberculosis anywhere, is Tuberculosis everywhere”.

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Source: GNA

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A total of 2,241 cases, were reported last year, compared with the year 2015 figure of 2,367.

Dr. Kwesi Yeboah Awudzi, the Deputy Regional Health Director, said it represented a 2.7 per cent reduction.

He asked that this should however not make anybody complacent, but spur health workers and everybody on to sustain the momentum of the fight against the disease.

Tuberculosis, he indicated, was curable and encouraged patients to report early to the hospital, more so when its treatment was free.

His advice came as Ghana joined countries across the globe to mark the World TB Day.

“Unite to end TB” was the theme chosen for this year’s event, to promote public awareness of the disease, which had remained an epidemic – causing one-and-a-half million deaths, mostly in developing nations.

Dr. Awudzi spoke of what he termed “a worrying trend of multiple-drug resistant-TB” where treatment of the disease, using isoniazid and rifampicin drugs was becoming ineffective.

“The condition arises when patients fail to take the prescriptions rightly causing the TB bacillus – the causal agent, to overcome the effects of the isoniazid and rifampicin drug”.

He reminded patients to stick to doctors’ prescriptions and to take their drugs regularly to avoid treatment failure.

Dr. Awudzi urged people to avoid crowded places and to cover their mouths and nose when coughing or sneezing.

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GNA

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