Vietnam Receives First GeneXpert Machines

On February 6th, 2012 TB CARE I collaborated with Vietnam National TB Program (NTP) to organize a ceremony to commemorate the delivery of the first 2 Xpert MTB/RIF diagnostic systems out of 17 machines which will be provided under the TB CARE I Project. The ceremony which took place at the National Lung Hospital, was attended by representatives of USAID (including the Country Director Mr. Francis Donovan), KNCV, WHO, MSH, FIND, CDC and representatives of the TB CARE I's local partners including the NTP and Central 74 Hospital. Two media articles on the event are linked to below (both in Vietnamese):

• http://www.chaobuoisang.net/
• http://laodong.com/

TB CARE I recently held an Operations Research course in Cambodia, a collaboration between KNCV, FHI 360 and WHO, with support from CDC. The course focused on developing new research on the following topics:

• • Improving Screening in Childhood TB
• • Low case detection among MDR suspects
• • A randomized control trial to improve the referral of risk groups in PPM and C-DOTS
• • Barriers to TB diagnosis among the Elderly – A Case-Control Study using Prevalence Survey data

Photovoices is a project in the Dominican Republic which aims to uncover the the human face of TB. Using photography and accompanying text, TB patients express their feelings and experiences, whilst driving both education and discussion on the subject of Tuberculosis. Selected photos can be seen in the form of a slideshow, which is available in English and Spanish.

• English
• Spanish

TB CARE I country director in the Dominican Republic Dr. Luis Alberto Rodríguez Reyes, M.D. has been awarded the ‘Premio Nacional de la Juventud Santo Domingo 2012’ (National Youth Award Santo Domingo 2012) in the category ‘Most Outstanding Contribution to Health' this prestigious prize was awarded on the ‘Día Nacional de la Juventud’ (National Youth Day). TB CARE I is very proud that Dr Luis Alberto is part of our team and we wish him all the best. We are confident that his contribution and that of the TB CARE I team will help in the fight against TB in the Dominican Republic. For more information on the award (in Spanish) click here.

The TB Alliance is proud to announce the completion of enrollment of the Phase III REMox TB trial. REMox TB has been a pioneering endeavor that overcame many challenges in building the scientific and other infrastructure needed to conduct a global clinical trial to the highest regulatory standards. In total, more than 1,900 patients were enrolled in the trial, which could yield the first new drug approved for the treatment of drug-sensitive TB in nearly 50 years, and shorten treatment by a third. For more information click here.

With technical support from TB CARE I and partners, the Botswana National Tuberculosis Reference Laboratory has received ISO 15189 accreditation from SANAS (South Africa National Accreditation Systems). The NTRL is the only center providing TB Culture and Drug Susceptibility testing in the whole of Botswana.

The Global Laboratory Initiative (GLI) has developed a Stepwise Process towards TB Laboratory Accreditation to assist national level tuberculosis diagnostic laboratories implement a Quality Management System which meets international standards. This guide translates the requirements of the ISO 15189 international standard into step-by-step activities, structures them in an interactive roadmap and provides many user-modifiable support materials such as document templates, software and information.

• GLI Accreditation Website

What happens if you get extensively drug-resistant tuberculosis twice? Here is one woman's story, click the link below.

• A face of TB: Mildred Fernando

TB CARE I took part in the 42nd Union Conference on Lung Health, which this year was held in the city of Lille, from the 26th-30th of October. The subject of this years conference was 'Partnerships for Scaling-up and Care'. Thanks to all the participants who stopped by our booth for a chat and we'll see you next year in Kuala Lumpur.

• The Union Website

TB CARE I recently held a very successful 3 day (22nd-25th Sept) country directors meeting to train and inform our country directors. It was a chance for all our TB CARE I country directors to come together for and have the opportunity to build their capacity to maintain and strengthen their technical leadership in supporting national TB programs and managing the TB CARE I country projects.

TB CARE I organized and held a 4-day training event from September 19-22nd in The Hague, Netherlands. This Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E) workshop was attended by 30 representatives from 16 different countries, made up of National TB Control Program (NTP) M&E Officers and TB CARE I/II and TB Task Order 2015 M&E Officers. The workshop was designed to strengthen the participants M&E knowledge and skills, along with connecting them to M&E officers from other countries. TB CARE I/II and TB Task Order 2015 M&E officers teamed up with NTP M&E staff to develop mini-M&E improvement workplans for the coming year, which are designed to address key M&E challenges.

• M&E Participants Slideshow

A training of trainers on the improvement of Chest X-Ray reading was organized by Kenyan Division of Leprosy, TB and Lung Disease (DLTLD), with the support and technical assistance of TB CARE I. 25 provincial radiographers and TB supervisors attended the training in Milile Resort, Nakuru. Pre-training the group had an average test score of 61% which rose to over 89% post-training. The Radiographic department is preparing to introduce Digital Radiography, which will improve quality, can lead to a higher detection of TB and will reduce the costs of chest radiography in the long run.

TB CARE I selected Nigeria as a country in which to rapidly expand GeneXpert/MTB RIF. TB CARE I is pleased to announce that the first 10 Gene Xpert tests have been performed in Nigeria albeit for training purposes. In total 31 GeneXpert machines have been procured in four countries. TB CARE I also supported a workshop in June to prepare for the implementation of GeneXpert with assistance from TB CARE I consultants.

• Rapid Implementation of the Xpert MTB/RIF diagnostic test
• GeneXpert FAQs