High-quality
tuberculosis
care will be
everywhere:
every single
patient
suffering
from
tuberculosis
in the
Region will
receive
high-quality
tuberculosis
care and
will be
cured; the
number of
tuberculosis
patients in
the Region
will
decrease;
and
eventually
the Region
will become
free from
tuberculosis.
This is the
future
direction of
tuberculosis
care in the
Region. This
means:
-
By 2010:
70% of
people
with
infectious
tuberculosis
will be
diagnosed
and 85%
of them
cured.
-
By 2015:
The
regional
burden
of
tuberculosis
disease
(deaths
and
prevalence)
will be
reduced
by 50%
relative
to 1990
levels.
-
By 2050:
The
regional
incidence
of
tuberculosis
disease
will be
less
than 1
per
million
population
(elimination
of
tuberculosis
as a
regional
public
health
problem).
The Global
Plan to Stop
TB 2006–2015
has a clear
vision for
the world
and for the
Region on
how to move
towards this
future. It
details the
strategy
(Stop TB
Strategy),
activities
(six
components
of Stop TB
Strategy)
and the
resources
needed (US$
56 billion
for the
world and
US$ 3.1
billion for
the Region).
The regional
scenario,
which is in
line with
the Global
Plan, is to
scale up and
establish
high-quality
tuberculosis
care by
realizing
the six
components
of the Stop
TB Strategy
throughout
the Region
by 2010. In
this
scale-up of
tuberculosis
care,
priority is
being given
to resolving
the main
problem in
tuberculosis
care in the
Region,
namely low
case
detection.
Activities
aim to
address
different
layers of
the
tuberculosis
case-finding
process
(Figure 2).
Each layer
represents
potential
tuberculosis
cases at
different
points in
the health
care seeking
process,
which should
result in
diagnosis
and
successful
treatment of
a
tuberculosis
patient at a
tuberculosis
basic
management
unit.
Figure 3.
Layers of
tuberculosis
case-finding
The
overarching
work and
support of
the EM
Partnership
will
strengthen
all these
activities
and ensure
the full
funding and
implementation
of the
Global Plan
to Stop TB
2006–2015 in
the
countries of
the Eastern
Mediterranean
Region.
We have a
vision to
achieve: to
allow the
children
born in this
millennium
to witness
the
elimination
of
tuberculosis
in their
lifetime.
We have a
target to
reach: to
reduce the
tuberculosis
burden by
half by
2015.
We have a
plan of
activities
with clearly
identified
steps.
This needs
everybody’s
action and
commitment.
Tuberculosis
is still
everywhere,
and the
future of
tuberculosis
care is
everybody’s
responsibility.
