Ahead of the World TB (Tuberculosis) Day, the National Tuberculosis Elimination programme in Meghalaya had organised awareness programmes for students recently.
Two programmes have been conducted recently by the State Tuberculosis Office on the impact of Tuberculosis in society organised for students and teachers of Divine Saviour Higher Secondary School and Dinet Manik Syiem Higher Secondary School, Shillong on March 9 and 10.
The Resource Persons in these programmes were Dr. M. Mawrie, State TB Officer, and Dr. A. J. Rynjah, Assistant Programme Officer, State TB Cell, Meghalaya.
Dr. Mawrie, State Tuberculosis Officer, explained about Tuberculosis and said it is highly contagious that affects people of all age groups and spreads through water droplets when an untreated TB patient coughs, sneezes or talks. He appealed to the students and teachers not to stigmatize TB patients but support them to recover from the disease.
Dr. Rynjah, Assistant Programme Officer cum DR-TB Coordinator, encouraged students to focus on the identification of signs and symptoms of Tuberculosis and to get tested whenever they have these symptoms.
Stating that this will help to detect and treat TB cases at the earliest and prevent the spread of the disease in the community, she stressed practicing cough etiquette at all times to control the spread of TB and other infectious diseases.
To enhance the knowledge of the students, a quiz competition was also conducted by Tracy Kharkamni, State Coordinator, followed by the distribution of prizes.
- Diengdoh, State Public-Private Coordinator has called for collective actions to fight the disease and achieve the goal of TB-free Meghalaya by 2025.
