Zimbabwe To Integrate TB, HIV Services, Health Official Says

The Zimbabwean government is creating a policy to combine tuberculosis and HIV/AIDS care to reduce deaths and complications related to the diseases, Tich Nyamundaya, AIDS and TB Unit deputy national coordinator, said recently at a TB conference in Zimbabwe's capital of Harare, the Herald reports. Nyamundaya told participants attending the two-day conference that the new policy will establish TB screening at HIV testing centers because about 80% of TB patients also are HIV-positive.

Nyamundaya said that most of Zimbabwe's health facilities no longer administer DOTS, adding that the strategy should be overhauled at all levels to ensure TB patients are taking their medication. Statistics presented at the conference, which was organized by the Zimbabwe AIDS Network, showed that the country has recorded a minimum 52% DOTS success rate. However, many TB patients are not monitored and fail to complete treatment successfully, which puts them at risk of developing multi-drug resistant TB. Advocates at the conference called on the government to speed up efforts to integrate TB and HIV services, saying that TB has been overlooked in previous years (Herald, 11/29).