The Mountain Journal
Kirinyaga County Government has enhanced TB management
services as more cases get
diagnosed following acquisition of advanced testing
equipment.
With the modern TB testing equipment, the county is now able
to carry out rapid testing for
patients who present with symptoms that could indicate the
presence of the disease.
The county government has equipped Kerugoya County Referral
Hospital, Kimbimbi, Sagana
and Thiba Hospitals with GeneXpert testing machines that are
able to give accurate and TB and
Multidrug resistant Tb results promptly.
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The county has also put up a 24-bed TB isolation center at
Kerugoya hospital which enables the
monitoring and treatment of patients who require admission.
Governor Anne Waiguru has said that the establishment of a
TB isolation facility as well as
improvement of TB management services in the county is in
line with the county’s goals of
provision of quality healthcare services to the county
residents through continuous improvement
of health facilities.
Her administration has been undertaking expansion of
infrastructure and equipping of health
facilities across the county.
“In the past, many cases of TB went undiagnosed due to lack
of adequate equipment as well as
unwillingness of patients to undertake testing. If left
untreated, TB which is a communicable
disease can lead to death. We have improved our TB
management services through the
establishment of an isolation facility and acquisition of
advanced testing equipment,” Waiguru
said.
The Public Health Act CAP 242, section 17 classifies TB as a
notifiable infectious disease. The
act states that those suffering from the notifiable
infectious diseases should be isolated in a
designated place while taking medication until the
assessment by a Medical Officer of Health
ascertains that the person can be discharged without
endangering the public health.
Franklin Mwenda, the county’s head of TB, Leprosy and Lung
disease program said the county
currently has 1,245 active cases of TB under treatment, with
18 of them being treated for
MultiDrug Resistant (MDR) TB. He said that the county has so
far attained 86% TB treatment
success rate against the 92% treatment rate set by the
National Government.
“Our ability to test has increased our case finding and
treatment thus our call to the public to visit
our hospitals for proper diagnosis and treatment,” said the
officer, adding that testing, treatment
and all drugs are offered for free. He emphasized on the
importance of adhering to TB
medication failure to which the disease could progress to
Multi Drug Resistant TB which is very
costly to treat and can cost the patient’s life. It takes
between six and 20 months to treat TB, with
the Multidrug resistant one taking longer to treat.
He observed that around 7% of TB patients die as a result of
late diagnosis which denies a
patient the opportunity of being treated at the appropriate
time.
Once a patient is diagnosed with TB, they are immediately
put on treatment and depending on
the severity of the illness, they can either be admitted in
the hospital or take drugs at home where
the local community health volunteer monitors them.
Mwenda said that one of the setbacks in TB management is
late detection and failure by patients
to adhere to the prescribed treatment plan. If one is found
to have stopped taking the medication
as required, they may have to be put on compulsory admission
until they finish their medication.
“Many of the TB patients will have been misdiagnosed and
treated for common colds and flus
four to seven times before they can correctly be diagnosed
for TB.” He said, noting that some
hospitals will prescribe without carrying out TB test while
other patients will get over the
counter medication without proper diagnosis.
Another setback against successful treatment is malnutrition
among patients where lack of
adequate food supplies force them to abandon their treatment
plan. Drug and alcohol
consumption also contributes to patients inconsistently
taking their medication.
The officer said that apart from treatment, the county has
an active TB prevention program that
involves educating about the disease as well as observing
infection prevention and control
protocols in all the health facilities.
“Health workers and the general public are also expected to
observe the laid down infection
prevention and control guidelines such as proper cough
etiquettes, staying in well ventilated
spaces and wearing a mask when necessary”, he said.
While anyone who comes across the TB virus can contract the
disease, those living together or
taking care of TB patients have a high risk of contracting
the disease. He also said that people
living with HIV and are not taking their medication
correctly are also highly likely to contract
TB due to frequent visits to hospitals for treatment of
other opportunistic diseases.
Susan Nyawira is one of the patients who have been receiving
treatment for TB at Kerugoya
County Referral Hospital. She says that she has received
great care at the hospital and has now
recovered though she still has to complete the full dosage
of her medication before being
discharged.
“When I came to this hospital my health had deteriorated so
much that I was weighing 32
kilograms. I was put on medication and I have been feeding
well at the hospital and now I weigh
58 kilograms. I feel so happy to have recovered and I look
forward to the day I will be released
to go and join my family,” said the mother of one who hails
from Mwea.
She said that she will not hesitate to educate the public on
the importance of getting tested for TB
whenever they have any of the symptoms and urges anyone who
have tested positive to ensure
that they have taken their medication as prescribed.
People who seek treatment in good time and complete the
treatment plan are able to resume
normal productive life afterwards. Peter Muthii who is a
bodaboda rider in Kerugoya town does
not shy away from telling people that TB is curable. Having
suffered from the disease and
getting treated, he is now able to carry on his normal
routine.
He says that one the biggest challenges in TB management is
inconsistency in taking medication
which he said was common among alcoholics as well as people
who cannot afford proper diet.
Muthii however says it is better to sacrifice alcohol than
sacrifice one’s life for not taking
medication correctly. He thanked the county government for
ensuring that TB patients get the
required support.
Some of the symptoms that should prompt one to undertake a
TB test include a cough, fatigue,
chills, fever, sweating at night or unexplained weight loss.
Someone who have had contact with a
TB patients are advised to get tested.
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