Hosanna aims to educate and aid TB patients
TB does not have to be a death sentence and the staff handling TB patients at Hosanna Community Projects are working hard to educate community members on TB and how it is handled.
Few people spare a thought when someone coughs, but for thousands of South Africans a persistent cough is a sign of Tuberculosis (TB). In town and the surrounding settlements, Hosanna Community Projects are working hard to help the many people with TB and to educate the people surrounding them.
Sr Elsina Mokwena, a retired nurse that is working at Hosanna’s clinic part time, gave Hazyview Herald some more information on the disease and how it is treated.
TB is a chronic infectious disease caused by a bacterium called Mycobacterium tuberculosis. In most cases the lungs are affected but other parts of the body such as bones, the nervous system and lymph nodes can also be attacked.
In the area, most patients have TB or the more severe Multi drug resistent TB (MDR). Both types of patients need to be hospitalised when they are initially diagnosed and the severe cases are taken to hospitals with special TB wards. Here, TB patients are medicated for two weeks before being discharged into the care of a nearby clinic or community project. They are then injected or take tablets daily for two months. After that, patients go for a check-up and if the test comes up negative, are put on more medication for another four months.
MDR patients on the other hand, have to be injected daily for six months, after which they take tablets until their treatment program is complete. MDR takes 18 months to two years to heal and even when healed, patients need to maintain a healthy lifestyle.
MDR medication can have side-effects like deafness which causes some patients to stop taking it. When Hosanna’s nurses and care workers come across patients experiencing side-effects, they are immediately referred to a doctor or specialist and their treatment is adjusted accordingly.
Patients who do not maintain a healthy diet and regularly take their medication often also contract HIV due to their lowered resistance. Home-based carers go to patients for follow up visits to ensure they are taking their medication and will even go look and provide medication for people who have defaulted their treatment.
Mokwena was full of praise of the home-based carers and said that they persist in their work despite difficult conditions.
Hosanna’s patients are also educated on health matters like special ways to cough to minimise the spread of the infection and how to plant a small vegetable gardens. They are encouraged to eat fresh fruit and vegetables to build up their immune systems and these gardens are a good way for unemployed patients to keep food on the table.
Mokwena and her fellow care workers travel around the area and visit patients in Calcutta, Soweto and Shabala. Thay often give out food parcels to their needy patients thanks to donations from local farmers and business owners.
People who have been infected with TB are encouraged to give nursing staff the contact details of people they come into close contact with. These people are also tested for TB and put into either preventative treatment or TB treatment, depending on the results.
All patients are assessed using a special form, which helps the care workers determine which authorities need to be involved. Patients are referred to social workers or other departments to help them get an ID or a grant to help them get food for themselves and their families.
Mokwena urges community members to go get tested for TB and to motivate patients to continue their treatment.
For more information on TB visit www.santa.org.za or contact Hosanna on 076-873-1869.
