Health Volunteer

Nutritional Counselling begins with the nutritional assessment of TB patients by

• Nutritional Status: Assessing the height, weight and BMI of the TB patient
• Diet and Preference food for TB patients
• Current appetite and food intake of TB patients

Based on the nutritional assessment, the following information can be conveyed to TB Patients

Awareness should be generated in the community for promoting various health programmes, health seeking behaviours, screening of TB cases etc. by involving and sensitizing community influencers including PRI members and treatment support groups.

Figure: Activities for awareness generation in community

Do’s

• Active listening, emphatic gestures and expressions
• Ensure the confidentiality of the conversation done with the patient
• Ensure Minimum interruption during the conversation with patient
• Ensuring availability of IEC materials such as posters, videos, pamphlets etc. to dispel myths and misconceptions.

Don'ts

Confidential dialogue between a health care provider and a patient that helps a patient to define his/her feelings, cope with stress, and to make informed decisions regarding treatment.

The patient should be counselled at all the three phases i.e.,

An SMS is triggered to the patient's mobile number registered in Nikshay. SMS can be related to notification, treatment initiation and treatment outcome.

A Treatment Supporter can be any person such as a Medical Officer, MPWs, community volunteers working with the program etc. Even a patient’s relative or family member can be a Treatment Supporter.

As per NTEP guidelines, salaried NTEP/General Health System staff may also be assigned as treatment supporters for a patient.  However, they will not be eligible for any honorarium.

A patient can only be linked to one treatment supporter at a time in Nikshay.

• Screening for four symptom complex for TB and refer for testing
• Support for treatment adherence
  • By self-monitoring
  • Patient /family counselling
  • Peer group support meetings
• Counselling of TB Patients
  • ​To report Adverse Drug Reaction(ADR), if any
  • Adhere to the treatment and ensure treatment completion
  • Regular monthly follows up during treatment
• Nutritional support
  • Supporting the patients in getting linked with existing nutritional supplementation schemes

Interaction with the patients and their families is crucial to gauge a patient's understanding of the disease he/she is suffering from and the course of treatment to be followed.

Aspects to be considered during a Home visit:

Contact tracing is a process to identify people who are  at a high risk of developing TB due to their contact with a known TB case.

The aim of contact tracing is to find other people with TB disease and those infected with TB

All close contacts, especially household contacts of a Pulmonary TB patient, should be screened for TB. 

In paediatric TB patients, reverse contact tracing for the search of any active TB case in the child's household must be undertaken.

Particular attention should be paid to contacts with the highest susceptibility to TB infection.

Public Health Action is conducted under the NTEP programme to support and prevent further health complications among TB patients after diagnosis.

Figure: Various activities under Public Health Action