Improving Early Tuberculosis Detection in the Democratic Republic of Congo

Tuberculosis (TB) is a serious health threat worldwide and remains a major public health challenge in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). Continued unrest in DRC’s northwestern Ituri province and the resulting large numbers of internally displaced populations (IDPs) have led to an increase in the number of TB patients lost to treatment follow-up, a decrease in adherence to treatment, and the displacement and low engagement of community health workers. WHO calls for “meaningful community engagement” as “critical to improve the reach and sustainability of TB services and accelerate progress towards ending TB by 2030.”

This technical brief summarizes MTaPS’ efforts to engage the community as a means to improve TB detection, through improving community health workers’ (known as relays) capacity to raise awareness on TB, refer presumptive TB cases to diagnostic centers, transport sputum samples, and provide home visits to support TB patients during treatment.