Program on Tuberculosis prevention held at GMC B’la

Baramulla, Dec 19: Centre for Health Research and Innovation (CHRI) on Tuesday organized a one-day Continuing Medical Education (CME) on the Programmatic Management of Tuberculosis Preventive Treatment (PMTPT) at Government Medical College Baramulla.
A medical official said that CHRI in collaboration with the Department of Chest Medicine at GMC Baramulla, conducted the CME under the project JEET (Joint Effort For Elimination of Tuberculosis), a Global Fund-supported initiative.
He said that Programmatic Management of Tuberculosis Preventive Treatment, a novel concept in tuberculosis management, is a crucial component of the National Strategic Plan (NSP 2017-2025) of the National Tuberculosis Elimination Program.
The CME was attended by Professor Dr. Naveed Nazir, Chairman State Task Force Committee NTEP J&K, Professor Dr. Ruby Reshi, Principal GMC Baramulla, Dr. Parvaiz Masoodi, Medical Superintendent AHGMC Baramulla, Heads of departments of the medical college, senior faculty members, PG students, and NTEP officials.
Dr. Shumail Bashir, Associate Professor and Nodal Officer NTEP GMC Baramulla, delivered a detailed presentation on PMTPT, discussing the treatment algorithm to screen the high-risk population and the importance of contact tracing for active tuberculosis patients.
Dr. Shumail presented figures regarding patients notified from GMC Baramulla and the initiation of TPT among eligible household contacts of pulmonary TB patients.
Dr. Wasim Iqbal, Assistant Professor Pediatrics, gave a brief presentation on the importance of the PMTPT program, discussing the challenges in diagnosing TB among children.
In his keynote address, Dr. Naveed Nazir Shah, Chairman State Task Committee NTEP, discussed the challenges in tuberculosis management and stressed the importance of Tuberculosis Preventive Treatment (TPT) among the high-risk population.
He urged working doctors to adopt PMTPT guidelines for screening the high-risk population for latent tuberculosis.
Dr. Ruby Reshi, Principal GMC Baramulla, commended the organizers for conducting the CME on a crucial national public health program.
She emphasized the importance of updating faculty members with the latest advances in diagnostic and treatment services under the National Tuberculosis Elimination Program.
Professor Dr. Abdul Majid, Chairman TB Core Committee GMC Baramulla, detailed efforts to sensitize the community on tuberculosis prevention measures and discussed outreach health programs.
Kifayat Wani, District Supervisor Project JEET, provided insights into the implementation of the PMTPT program in District Baramulla.
The session concluded with a question-answer segment and the felicitation of participants.