Senapati, July 30: A dissemination meeting for the project titled “An Innovative Approach for Engaging Student and Women Organization to Improve Tuberculosis Case Finding and Treatment Adherence: A Step Towards Tuberculosis Elimination in Senapati District, Manipur” was held at the DRDA Hall, Senapati on Tuesday.
The event was graced by Mamoni Doley, IAS, Deputy Commissioner of Senapati, as the chief guest, and Rang David Kung, MCS, Additional Deputy Commissioner, as special guest. It witnessed the presence of officials and scientists from ICMR, WHO, and health institutions including Dr. Harpreet Kaur, Dr. Collins Zekotso Sonu, Dr. N. Karikalan, Dr. Muniyandi, Dr. Basilea Watson, Dr. A Stephen, Dr. Suchitra, Amit Solanki, and representatives from the Senapati District Students Association (SDSA), Senapati District Women’s Association (SDWA), and community volunteers.
In her welcome address, Dr. Linette Muanching, District TB Officer, highlighted the shared commitment to the message: “Yes, we can end TB.” The project, initiated between 2023–2025, involved collaborations with the National TB Elimination Program (NTEP), National Health Mission (NHM), RIMS Imphal, Directorate of Health Services, and local associations.
DC Mamoni Doley acknowledged the serious concern posed by the prevalence rate of 366 per 1 lakh population. She termed the initiative as a shift from a medical to a community-driven approach and stressed the importance of volunteer training in TB awareness and case finding. She also congratulated the volunteers and implementing team for their contributions.
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Dr. Sumpi Percy, Chief Medical Officer and Director of the District Health Society, stated that before this project, TB case finding in Senapati was passive. Due to financial and manpower constraints, many TB cases remained undiagnosed. The current project allowed for active case finding through house-to-house visits led by trained volunteers, reaching even the most remote areas.
Using a quasi-experimental pre-post design, the study trained 708 students and women volunteers. They conducted household enumeration in 189 villages, organized 125 TB awareness campaigns, and carried out two rounds of active TB case finding. Their efforts led to the detection of additional TB cases and improved treatment adherence.
The findings demonstrated that the community-driven model was effective in addressing gaps in TB care in hard-to-reach areas and could serve as a best practice for future interventions. The project also contributed to improving TB knowledge, reducing stigma, and encouraging early health-seeking behaviour.
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Volunteers shared their experiences during an interactive session, followed by distribution of certificates. Addressing the media, Dr. Karikalan stated that around 150 TB cases were detected through this project, with nearly 150 awareness programs conducted in challenging conditions, including during periods of social unrest.