Tswelopele Makoe
SOME, even many might not have been aware, but March was TB awareness month in South Africa. Tuberculosis, as TB is commonly known, is a severely contagious bacterial disease that attacks the lungs.
Tuberculosis is not only an issue that has been rife in our nation, but an illness that kills millions of people, including children, every year. In South Africa, the annual fatalities from TB are as high as 300 000.
The cause of TB was discovered back in 1882 on the 24th of March. At the time, TB was the cause of death of one in every seven people, and prevalent throughout the European and Western world.
Today, TB is one of the biggest killers worldwide, coming only second to the dreadful HIV/AIDS. In 2021 alone, 56 000 people died from TB, and more than 304 000 people were infected.
The tuberculosis death rate is highest amongst those infected with HIV/AIDS and other autoimmune diseases. This is exacerbated by those who go undiagnosed or treated, as many with the disease do not present any symptoms.
The disease is typically spread by the bacteria in one’s coughs and sneezes. Other TB patients suffer fever, weight loss, and night sweats. More perilously, TB can spread to your brain and your spine. This disease is more prevalent in many overcrowded living and working spaces.
Although we are in the modern era, our nation remains a deeply disproportionate society. As a result, a large portion of our society is unable to turn to health care when they need it. Furthermore, many have limited access to healthy foods, adequate shelter, and utilities such as clean air and water. This often leads to underprivileged people suffering from an array of diseases, in addition to TB. Ultimately, poverty leads to poor health.
TB as an infectious disease leaves entire households and workplaces exceptionally vulnerable. Infants and children are especially defenceless as their immune systems are not yet fully formed. This means that many families, including children, are forced out of workplaces, schools, churches, and other communal gatherings for extended periods of time.
There are various societal and situational instances that can force families to face strenuous financial issues, such as the death or disability of a primary household earner. TB can therefore be debilitating to one’s everyday life.
Although TB may be cured with antibiotics, the healing time is extensive. Drug resistant TB requires a combination of different medicines to treat and can take up to 30 months to heal.
Furthermore, various treatments can foster additional side effects such as pain, nausea, numbness, and disorientation. The national rate of TB has thankfully been steadily declining since 2010 and has unfortunately slanted upwards with the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic.
According to TBFacts.org, low-income and middle-income countries comprise 95% of TB deaths, and are among the top three causes of death for women aged 15 to 44.
Hesperian Health Guides postulated women as being more vulnerable to illnesses and poor health, particularly during pregnancy, breastfeeding, and menstruation periods. This often leads to exhaustion, anaemia, and infections. This is further exacerbated by strenuous work lives, mental health challenges and various forms of violence.
Women’s bodies are exceedingly overworked, and their general health is greatly affected as a result of this.
Radio 702 recently reported that a serious lack of testing and treatment proliferate the fatality rate of TB in SA. The TB diagnostic network assessment, taking place from February 27th to March 10th 2023, was undertaken by an array of technical experts from various institutions, in all 9 provinces.
The purpose of this assessment was to strengthen and enhance access to TB diagnosis, treatment, and care for affected people. It sought to determine whether the TB diagnostic network aligns with the current needs and objectives of the national TB strategic plan. The findings of this assessment will be integrated into the National TB Programme. The objective of the national programme is to end TB by 2030.
Much like many illnesses and diseases, TB is preventable, treatable, and curable. There is a plethora of illnesses in our society, but it is our individual and collective responsibility, to ensure that our personal health (check) is undertaken promptly and seriously. In our stratified society, it is especially difficult for the underprivileged to effectively address health issues.
Many of those in our society are in a fight for survival, and need to work in adverse conditions for an extensive period of time, in order to make ends meet. Many others are not afforded the opportunity or time to address their health concerns, and go many years without proper medical care. Additionally, those who are homeless or in remote areas, do not have access to adequate health services.
Although poverty, misinformation, lack of social resources and social services escalate the occurrence of diseases such as TB, we can mitigate this by prioritising educative resources, and mitigating socio-economic risk factors that directly contribute to poor health in our nation.
Ultimately, collective health care is a public concern, and not just a personal advantage but a social responsibility. The health of our citizens affects the entire nation, and also the efficiency of our economic, socio-political, and cultural societal structures.
Private and public institutions, structures, and civil society cannot effectively undertake its role if we as individuals do not prioritise our health. We cannot afford to further pressure our already strained health care systems. It is a service, not only to one’s family and colleagues, but also to oneself, to uphold a good standard of health, and to promote education on the enhancement of one’s health.
The advancement of knowledge on various societal illnesses will not only encourage our communities to take preventative action, but improve treatment rates of an array of resultant illnesses. The health of our citizens will indeed contribute to the performance and prosperity of our nation.
We need to actively add value to the sectors of civil society that seek to mitigate public illnesses, and meaningfully affect positive change in our society. It will take a collective societal and political effort to push back the fatality rate of TB, and many other illnesses in our society by 2030. It is a worthy goal that many future generations will be grateful for.
Tswelopele Makoe is MA (Ethics) Student in the Desmond Tutu Centre for Religion and Social Justice at UWC. She is also a gender activist.