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Joyce Mukucha Herald Reporter
Health workers should be screened periodically for tuberculosis as a prevention strategy, a Government official has said. Health and Child Care principal director (curative services) Mr Sydney Makarawo said health workers were exposed to TB through the air they shared with infected people.

He was speaking during the National Infection Prevention and Control forum in Harare last week. The workshop was organised by the Ministry of Health and Child Care in conjunction with Biomedical Research and Training Institute and the Infection Control Association of Zimbabwe.

Mr Makarawo, who is also the National Infection Prevention and Control chairperson said: “It is of paramount importance that healthcare workers be screened for TB and those with the disease should receive early treatment and support.

“The Ministry of Health and Child Care is coming up with a Health care Worker TB Policy and I believe you will be given information on it during this forum. It is our responsibility to ensure that we are screened for TB and that we work in a safe environment by taking the necessary steps to protect ourselves.”

He said Zimbabwe had high TB incidents. “Zimbabwe is one of the countries in all three World Health Organisation lists with triple burden of TB, TB/HIV and Multi-Drug Resistant TB (MDR-TB),” said Mr Makarawo.

“This is a worrying status. Health care facilities are high TB-prevalent settings which need stronger focus on TB Infection Control (TBIC). Health care workers spend most of their working time in that environment. Health Care Workers (HCW), patients and visitors are therefore at risk of acquiring TB in health care institutions.”

Centre for Diseases Control and Prevention’s branch chief (HIV services) Dr Shirish Balachandra said TB was prevalent in Zimbabwe “causing morbidity and mortality”.

“The risk of TB transmission at a health care facility is significant, among patients and from patients to health workers. It is greater with increasing volumes of contagious (smear-pap) TB patients; the implementation of effective infection control measures can significantly reduce the risk of contracting the disease,” she said.

“As we all know, health workers are the backbone of the entire health system, it is therefore paramount that we implement measures to keep them safe.”

Biomedical Research and Training Institute director general Dr Shungu Munyati weighed in: “The MoHCC in preventing Health care Associated Tuberculosis Infection is finding ways to support health workers by linking the screening for TB to wellness programmes and non-communicable diseases.

“The institute is also working with Infection Control Association of Zimbabwe on another exciting project called DIPSA, with the Department of Health at Bindura University of Science and Technology to establish a Postgraduate Diploma in Infection Prevention and Control.” Previously, 800 health workers in five targeted provinces of the country got screened and 20 were positive and have since received treatment.