MEMBERS of the House of Assembly and Senators will today take part in a Tuberculosis screening exercise in Shurugwi as part of a drive to encourage the public to undergo screening for the killer disease.
The lawmakers who are part of the Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Health and Child Care and National Tuberculosis Caucus, will voluntarily take part in the exercise to mark the World TB day commemorations.
World TB day is commemorated annually on March 24 and this year’s belated commemorations are being held under the theme; “Unite to end TB: Leave no one behind”.
Speaking at a workshop for Parliamentarians in Kwekwe yesterday, deputy director, HIV/Aids and TB unit in the Ministry of Health and Child Care, Dr Charles Sandy, said parliamentarians volunteered to take a leading role in encouraging the public to be screened for TB.
“Parliamentarians have to play a major role in encouraging the public to be screened for TB because we have a lot of people who might have the disease but might not know that they have it because of their reluctance to be screened.
“It is our expectation that if people see their leaders being screened they will also be encouraged to be part of the programme tomorrow (today),” said Dr Sandy.
He said political commitment was vital in the fight against TB as it guaranteed suitable policies and adequate resources needed to eradicate the disease.
Dr Sandy revealed that one of the major challenges faced in the fight against TB was stigma which led to most people being reluctant to be screened for the disease, or even be known to be taking TB medication.
“The truth is there is still a lot of stigma related to TB. Most people believe that when they are told that they have TB they will die. As a Ministry we now have to work hard to fight off this stigma and conscientise the public that TB is curable, encouraging them to be screened and further take their medication when they are diagnosed with the disease,” said Dr Sandy.
Chiwundura Member of Parliament, Kizito Chivamba, said Members of Parliament were going to lead by example and go for TB screening.
Speaking at the same workshop, World Health Organisation National Professional Officer for TB, Dr Patrick Hazangwe, said eradicating TB would save the country a lot of resources which can be directed towards development.
“Taking it from this year’s theme, it tells us that we have to all come together in this fight bearing in mind that TB is there and is curable. We must not forget that if we fight against this disease, in the future we will have a huge chunk of our resources going towards development,” said Dr Hazangwe.
TB remains a public health threat in Zimbabwe, which is ranked among the 30 TB high burdened countries in the world. Health critics posit that Zimbabwe might not achieve the 2030 End TB strategy if resources are not harnessed locally to fund TB programmes.
The End TB strategy seeks to end the global epidemic, with targets to reduce TB deaths by 95 percent and cutting new cases by 90 percent between 2015 and 2035 while ensuring that no family is burdened with disastrous expenses due to TB. – State Media