Good old postmen to help detect TB now

Aditi Tandon

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Tribune News Service

New Delhi, August 12

Good old postmen will soon deliver not just letters across India’s rural heartland, but also transport suspected tuberculosis samples from remote corners to aid government efforts at ending the disease by 2025.

In a unique experiment, the Ministry of Health has engaged the Department of Posts for help with human couriers and speed posts to deliver TB samples from suspected patients to state-of-the-art laboratory centres.

The bulk of current TB burden is attributed to late detection, resulting in delayed diagnosis and treatment.

Over one in every four TB deaths worldwide happen in India and of the 10.4 million estimated new annual cases globally in 2015 (latest WHO data available), 16,67,136 were from India.

“Right now, we have top-end machines to detect multi-drug resistant and extreme-drug resistant TB strains but the delayed transport of samples to detection centres is posing problems. The Postal Department has a nationwide reach and has agreed to deliver samples to help us cut down delays and fast-track detection and treatment. We will have a pilot test around Delhi,” says Sunil Khaparde, chief of the TB division in the Health Ministry.

The government has stationed over 1,100 CBNAAT machines across the districts to detect severe forms of TB.

Each such machine can test 250 TB samples in a day and report results speedily. However, most CBNAAT machines are lying under-utilised because much fewer than 250 samples reach the machine centres.

The Tribune has also learnt that the Centre has simplified old guidelines on TB sample packaging. Old guidelines mandated samples to be packed in wooden boxes.“This packaging norm has been changed with WHO norms  which allow sample packaging in thermocol. Safe packaging is necessary and we are working on new systems,” Khaparde said.

Once postmen and human couriers get involved in sputum transport, the Centre hopes to meet detection targets.