Jakarta – Indonesia is still in an ongoing war with Tuberculosis (TB). The Health Ministry in tandem with all healthcare workers detected more than 700,000 cases of the disease throughout 2022. This is the highest number since TB is included in the national priority program.
Indonesia has the third-highest number of Tuberculosis cases in the world after India and China, with 824,000 cases and 93,000 deaths per year, or 11 deaths per hour.
Based on the Global TB Report for 2022, the highest number of TB cases is seen in the productive age group, especially those aged 25 to 34 years. In Indonesia, the highest number of TB cases is in the productive age group of 45 to 54 years.
Mohammad Syahril, a spokesperson for the Health Ministry, said that the high detection of the disease was due to the government’s commitment and increasingly intensive surveillance. “Detection is the first step to treat patients with TB so a large-scale TB detection was carried out in 2022,” said Syahril in a press statement received by Tempo on March 31, 2023.
Health Minister Budi Gunadi Sadikin asked all health workers to prioritize the search for people with TB so that 90 percent of the detection target can be achieved in 2024. “Massive screening efforts have started since 2022,” said Syahril.
Syahril explained that his institution had prepared a new protocol in cooperation with various associations and professional organizations, including Global Fund and the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
According to Syahril, finding cases as early as possible and treating them thoroughly until they recovered are among the most important efforts to stop TB transmission in the community.
In 2022, the success rate for drug-sensitive TB treatment in Indonesia reached 85 percent, while the success rate for treating drug-resistant TB amounted to 55 percent.
Indonesia has a number of strategies for dealing with Tuberculosis in the National TB Elimination Strategy as stipulated in Presidential Decree No. 67 of 2021, starting from strengthening commitment, increasing access to TB services, optimizing TB promotion and prevention efforts, TB treatment and infection control, then using research results and technology.
Source : Tempo
