The ninth meeting of National Managers of Tuberculosis Control Programme in Eastern Mediterranean Region will be held in Lahore from April 26 to 29, 2004.
According to an announcement of WHO office in Punjab, the meeting which is one of the WHO Eastern Mediterranean regional office activities, is aimed at enhancing national and regional efforts to implement TB control strategies as well as striking balance among the countries with respect to efforts to achieve the global TB control goals.
This goal, it added, can be achieved through monitoring the control effort development, with special emphasis on the quality and comprehensiveness of activities under the DOTS (directly observed treatment) short course strategy.
In addition, a plan for integrating the DOTS strategy in the curriculum of faculties of medicine will be discussed and prepared.
The meeting will also address the results of a study prepared by International Union of Medical Students Association in tuberculosis education in the faculties of medicines in Egypt, Jordan Kuwait, Lebanon, Pakistan and Tunisia.
The study financed and supported technically by the regional office, is expected to enhance efforts to integrate the DOTS strategy in the curriculum of faculties of medicine in the region.
The WHO Punjab office announcement further said that WHO urges countries to boost their capacities to detect TB cases, improve the accuracy and comprehensiveness monitoring and reporting systems and full apply the DOTS strategy with 100 percent coverage.
It, however, pointed out that 18 countries in the region have succeeded in achieving full coverage and even Pakistan, Afghanistan, Somalia and Yemen are in the process of reaching this same target.
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