PHM-Exch> On world TB day

[Claudio Schuftan]

From: HEAD Philippines headphil at gmail.com


*“Tuberculosis is a measure of our poverty”  *

“Tuberculosis is a real measure of the quality of lives of poor
people today.”

As nations around the globe commemorate World Tuberculosis Day, Health
Alliance for Democracy reiterated the significance of tuberculosis as more
than just a disease that needs to be eradicated.

“After more than five decades, TB still ranks among the top causes of
disease and death in many countries,” said Dr. Geneve Rivera, HEAD
secretary-general. “This, despite advances in medicine and in health-related
technologies, and amidst government programs.”

TB is a disease of poverty that goes beyond medical solutions.

“TB is not just a matter of providing the right drugs and ensuring
compliance. TB is not just a medical issue, it is a social one. It reflects
the extent of our underdevelopment - our inability to provide the quality of
life necessary for our people to be healthy enough to resist being infected.
As such, social determinants of health should be addressed with equal, if
not more, importance.”

Such social factors include unemployment, low wages, poor working conditions
of laborers, landlessness of farmers, lack of adequate shelter and basic
utilities for the urban poor, and other conditions that directly affect the
people’s standard of living.

“Members of the health sector are already doing their share to empower the
people through community organizing and health education. Yet community
health workers working in far-flung areas do not get due recognition.

Tuberculosis is a clear indication of how the political and socio-economic
policies pursued by many administrations around the world in line with
globalization are detrimental to  poor people. “When close to half of the
population remains mired in abject poverty, then TB will persist.

Such policies must change in order to address the TB situation worldwide.

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