TB CARE I-Namibia Year 1 Quarterly Report October-December 2011

The six technical areas of Universal access, TB/HIV, PMDT, Infection Control, Health systems Strengthening (HSS), and M&E/OR dominated the efforts of TB CARE I during this quarter. Implementation focused on providing gap-filling financial support to three major community-based TB organizations (CoHeNa, Penduka, and Health Unlimited) due to unforeseen delays in disbursement of Global Fund 10 money. TB CARE I also supported the National TB-IC Coordinator to accompany technicians from South Africa to visit Oshakati and Rundu hospitals for the installation of UVGI's in the TB wards. The UVGI lamps and equipment were procured with funding from TB CARE I. TB CARE I supported and participated in the quarterly TB National Steering Committee (NSC) meeting, with a total of 38 participants from various stakeholders attending the meeting. The major highlights for this quarter included gap-filling financial support provided to three community-based NGOs providing community TB care services, and the installation of UVGI's at Oshakati and Rundu hospitals. The overall implementation status of APA 1 stood at 87% by the end of December 2011. TB CARE I continued to support the NTLP in all aspects of TB control, including technical assistance, training, and capacity building. The organization also provided financial support to community-based TB organizations and implemented various projects to improve TB control in Namibia. TB CARE I supported the development of the DR-B curriculum for healthcare workers, as well as the review of the existing TB training curriculum, in conjunction with I-TECH. The organization also provided targeted technical supportive supervision to the Kavango region, based on the review of the NTLP 2010 annual report for TB. TB CARE I continued to work with the NTLP and CDC to rectify the problem of extracting essential case data from the laboratory for use as the denominator. The technical area of Universal and Early Access reported a treatment success rate of 82%, exceeding the target of 85%. The case detection rate (CDR) was 76%, with a target of 82%. The number of MDR cases diagnosed was not available due to the laboratory surveillance system's inability to provide information on the number of MDR TB cases diagnosed. TB CARE I continued to work with the NTLP and CDC to rectify the problem by modifying the recording and reporting system. The technical area of Infection Control reported that basic TB infection control measures were implemented in all hospitals and at major health facilities according to national guidelines. The proportion of public hospitals with functioning TB infection control plans was 17/34, with a target of 25/34. TB CARE I supported the installation of UVGI's at Oshakati and Rundu hospitals and conducted site visits to these institutions. The technical area of TB/HIV reported that the case fatality rate among TB-HIV co-infected patients was 9%, with a target of reducing the mortality rate by 50%. Improved case management of TB/HIV co-infected individuals was noted throughout the country. TB CARE I continued to support the NTLP in all aspects of TB/HIV control, including technical assistance, training, and capacity building. The technical area of PMDT reported that the proportion of confirmed cases of multidrug-resistant (MDR) TB cases that are put on treatment was not available due to the laboratory surveillance system's inability to provide information on the number of MDR TB cases diagnosed. TB CARE I continued to work with the NTLP and CDC to rectify the problem by modifying the recording and reporting system. The technical area of Health Systems Strengthening (HSS) reported that the number of health care workers and CBTBC providers attending any local training courses on TB per year was 0, with a target of 430. Although few trainings were conducted, the target was surpassed for the year. TB CARE I continued to support the NTLP in all aspects of HSS, including technical assistance, training, and capacity building. TB CARE I continued to support the NTLP in all aspects of TB control, including technical assistance, training, and capacity building. The organization also provided financial support to community-based TB organizations and implemented various projects to improve TB control in Namibia.