Over nine lakh tuberculosis patients have been adopted under a community support programme launched by the Centre to eliminate the disease five years ahead of the Sustainable Development Goal target of 2030.
The government rolled out the Pradhan Mantri TB Mukt Bharat Abhiyan on September 9 under which tuberculosis patients can be adopted and cared for by an individual, elected representatives or institutions.
So far, the portal has witnessed 12,225 registrations of Ni-kshay Mitras, incuding individuals,organisations, industries and elected representatives among others, an official said. According to official sources, of the total 13,51,550 tuberculosis patients, including multi-drug resistant ones presently on treatment in the country, 9.42 lakh patients have given their consent to be adopted so far. Also, 9,24,089 have been adopted till Thursday.
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The people and institutions coming forward to take care of the patients are being called "Ni-kshay Mitra". They can adopt blocks, districts or even an individual patient and provide nutritional and treatment support to help them recover. The government aims to ensure adoption of all consented TB patients by September 17 -- Prime Minister Narendra Modi's birthday.
The four-pronged support includes nutritional, additional diagnostic, additional nutritional supplements and vocational support. The donors could be a wide range of stakeholders from elected representatives, political parties to corporates, NGOs, institutions and individuals.
Under the programme, a monthly food basket comprising three kg of rice, 1.5 kg of pulses, 250 grams of vegetable cooking oil and one kg of milk powder or six litres of milk or one kg of groundnut has been recommended for each tuberculosis patient.
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Thirty eggs can also be added to the basket, according to an official source. "In addition to nutritional support, the donor organisation or individual may also provide vocational support, additional diagnostic help or nutritional supplements containing B complex vitamins, vitamin C and minerals," the official said.
Explaining the vocational support part, he said presently, 65 to 70 per cent of the TB patients are in the age group of 15 to 45 years. The minimum period of commitment for providing additional support to a TB patient shall be one year, he said, adding that there are options of a support programme for two and three years.
This is a voluntary initiative, the official added. The campaign is part of the expansion of the Union health ministry's focus on the eradication of tuberculosis by ramping up community support. Those interested in participating in the programme can register on the Ni-kshay 2.0 portal -- communitysupport.nikshay.in -- and fill in their names, contact details, the type and duration of support as well as the geographic area where they want to provide the support, following which a unique ID will be generated.
An e-mail with the contact details of the district TB officer concerned will be sent to the Ni-kshay Mitra and vice versa to facilitate discussion, planning and implementation of the support committed.
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"The involvement of the community in supporting the treatment cascade will help in the reduction of stigma and also lead to increased awareness among the public regarding tuberculosis.
"The improved nutrition for the TB patients shall result in better treatment outcomes. It will also lead to a reduction of the out-of-pocket expenditure for the families of the TB patients," an official said.
(With PTI inputs)
