TB CARE Annual Work Plan and Budget

The NSP was endorsed by the NTP in June 2016 and is now in the process of printing for dissemination. The Global Fund Concept Note was submitted on June 17, 2016, after revisions were made to ensure that the narrative addressed the perspectives of the Technical Review Panel (TRP) members. The project also supported the revision of the TB Infection Control Manual, which was finalized after a consultative expert meeting on May 10, 2016. A TB infection control training of trainers (TOT) was conducted on May 12-13, 2016, for medical officers, TB team leaders, regional officers from NTP, and partner INGOs. The project also supported the preparation of an accompanying Job Aids Package, Trainer's Manual, and Action plan for expanding TB IC training to township health centers. In addition, the project provided technical assistance to the Global Fund projects, built laboratory capacity at the national level, and worked with ethnic authorities to support Burma's goal to increase access to TB services. A technical support visit was conducted from April 27 to June 3 by a laboratory specialist, who reviewed and updated standard operating procedures (SOPS) and trained staff on the internationally recommended format for SOPS. The visit resulted in the development of a phased plan to build the Yangon National TB Reference Laboratory (NTRL) capacity to work independently with only supervisory support after two years of intensive technical support from the Challenge TB project. The project also engaged with NGO partners working in ethnic areas to identify training needs and increase access to TB services. During this quarter, the project successfully linked with the Karen Department of Health and Welfare (KDHW) and provided training to increase TB knowledge to basic health care staff in KDHW from 11 townships in Mon State, Kayin State, Thanintharyi Region, and East Bago Region. Two trainings were conducted on April 25-26 and April 28-29, during which 77 community health workers were trained. The project faced technical and administrative challenges, including the NTP's intensive focus on the NSP and Global Fund Concept, which created challenges for the project to conduct planned activities outside of these two primary areas of concern. However, the project was able to identify additional areas that the NTP agreed for the project to conduct, including laboratory, child TB, and TB-IC activities. The project also planned to conduct a report dissemination workshop to share the results of the PPM assessment to stakeholders and make joint plans for expansion. The project made progress in enabling the environment for TB control, including the PPM assessment, which was partially met. The report dissemination workshop is expected to be conducted next quarter. The project also implemented scale-up in selected sites, including mapping drug seller locations, reviewing and selecting existing IEC materials, adapting and developing materials if needed, and printing materials to be used. Four trainings were conducted for drug sellers, and champions were identified and trained.