PEOPLE suffering from tuberculosis (TB) are not to pay anything at state-owned hospitals and clinics because the treatment is free.
The disease is not also caused by the gods or witches but by bacteria through the air infecting the lungs, brain and the uterus.
The Deputy Eastern Regional Director of Health Services (Public Health), Dr George Bonsu, made this known at a seminar organised by the Regional Directorate of the Ghana Health Service for municipal and district information officers in the region last weekend.
The exercise was to equip the information officers on the prevention and treatment of the disease to enable them to disseminate information on the disease to the public.
In a statement issued by one of the public relations officers of the Regional Information Office, Miss Ivy A. Appiah, Dr Bonsu stressed the need for massive public education campaign on the issue since most people did not know that treatment of TB was free.
Dr Bonsu, according to the statement, said every person above the age of 15 could be exposed to TB and that those who coughed continuously for two weeks should immediately report to the hospital for treatment.
He explained that the treatment of the disease normally lasts for six months, but if it was not treated, it would infect approximately between 10 and 15 persons within a year.
Dr Bonsu stated that only 564 out of the 2,149 expected cases of TB were reported in the region last year.
He, therefore, advised people with symptoms of TB to report to the hospitals for treatment.
The Regional Information Officer, Mr Akwasi Amankwa stated that his outfit had embarked on a five-day public education campaign on the issue and urged the participants to discharge their duties with commitment and dedication for the success of the campaign.
Mr Amankwaa expressed gratitude to the Ministry of Health as well as the Eastern Regional Directorate of the Ghana Health Service for sponsoring and facilitating the workshop.
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