On behalf of South Lancashire’s Soroptimists, the region’s Programme Action Officer – Eileen Griffiths – welcomed Clare Shaw from Target Tuberculosis as their guest speaker at the summer meeting.
Clare’s initial quiz highlighted how little is generally known about TB – how it is transmitted from person to person – how prevalent it is worldwide – and how ‘active’ TB is rightly feared as a killer disease, particularly in poorer communities.
TB is the biggest infectious killer of young women in the world today. Through cultural restrictions, poverty, lack of understanding, or other barriers, women tend to present later and therefore have a lesser chance of receiving successful treatment. Yet testing and treatment are generally free.
TB is a global crisis; however there is relatively little modern investment in diagnosis and treatment. A full course of antibiotics still takes 6-9 months to complete, otherwise there is the risk of developing drug-resistant TB, which is far costlier to detect and treat.
Working with communities to ensure effective testing and treatment is a challenge. Target Tuberculosis actively tackles this challenge by organising frontline health and education projects. It gives funding, support and advice to local partner organisations in Southern Africa and South Asia that work directly with impoverished communities affected by TB.