New Era

WALVIS BAY - NamPort Social Investment Fund (NSIF) has donated equipment valued at N$17Â 800 towards the fight against tuberculosis (TB).

The donation was availed to Walvis Bay 'Kondja Multi-drug Resistant-TB Facility to support Government's efforts in the fight against TB.

It has been noted multi-drug resistant TB (MDR-TB) is a very serious disease, as it cannot be treated with normal TB drugs. In addition, this form of TB is highly infectious and anyone who gets it will need compulsory treatment for at least two years, six to 12 months of which should be in hospital confinement.

New Era learnt that Walvis Bay has the highest number of such patients due to prevailing weather conditions.

NSIF's trustee, Suama Itope, said last year's World Health Organisation (WHO) report on anti-drug resistance documented the highest levels of multi-resistant TB. The 2009 WHO TB report, she added, estimated that more than half a million new cases of MDR-TB occurred during 2007.

"Even more worrisome is that well over half of these cases were resistant to multiple drugs right from the start and not as a direct result of substandard treatment. This, however, confirms that resistant strains are now circulating in the general population, spreading widely and largely silently in the growing pool of latent infection," said Itope. Equally of concern, Itope said, is that drug resistant TB creates additional demands and pressure on compounds of the health system that are already stretching beyond available resources.

Government spends at least N$400 per patient on treating normal TB. For MDR-TB the cost of treatment dramatically increases to N$24Â 000 per patient (including hospitalisation and drugs), she said.

"Dear patients, we know and understand that your major challenge is to be kept in a confined facility for such a long time with little entertainment or pastime away from your families just because of the seriousness of this form of TB and the treatment that goes along," she said.

"These challenges, however, do not give you the opportunity to slip back into the community and perpetuate the spread of this dangerous TB. We need to remember that 50 years ago there was no cure for TB but drugs to combat this disease were developed and have helped to save millions of lives," she said.

Itope urged all patients to adhere to MDR-TB treatment and guidelines and to continue taking the full course of treatment and not to stop when they begin to feel better.

"As part of our social commitment to this initiative, we have decided to donate some much-needed equipment to brighten the lives at 'Kondja Facility' today as a short-term solution. For a long-term solution, we further pledge to continue assisting the MDR-TB treatment facility in terms of infrastructural development that we anticipate to start immediately. The purpose is to support the facility and the upkeep of patients in any way possible to ensure that they feel at home and motivated to stay confined until they complete their treatment," she added.

Meanwhile, Christencia Thataone, Director of Erongo Health Directorate said, "Staying in a place like this for two years can be very challenging for the patients. That is why we hear of people sneaking out to go to shebeens because of the lengthy duration they stay in the wards it is just too boring. If we allow them to move around and go to their houses then each and every one of us will be affected."

The donated goods include cups, bowls, two fridges, two microwaves, two kettles, two stoves and games. NSIF was established in late 2006 for the purpose of positioning NamPort as a responsible corporate citizen with an objective of making a meaningful contributions to the development and upliftment of the Namibian people.

To achieve their objectives they fund projects aimed at poverty alleviation, job creation, education, entrepreneurial skills development and health care.

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