Left. Right. Repeat. One foot after another. Kilometer after kilometer. Employees of KNCV Tuberculosis Foundation The Hague will pound the pavement to fundraise for food support in Tajikistan. Muscles will ache and calories consumed in startling contrast to TB patients who simply lack this kind of physical energy.
Tajikistan Multidrug-Resistant Tuberculosis Success
Tajikistan through Challenge TB, a USAID funded and KNCV led and managed project, has made significant progress in the management of multidrug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB) with the introduction of new and shorter regimens recommended by the World Health Organization (WHO).
Last week a small ceremony was held at the U.S. Embassy in Dushanbe to congratulate the first ten patients successfully treated with the regimen. The new treatment takes half the time than the standard treatment, is more effective and easier for patients to tolerate. It has been so successful that there are plans to expand the program throughout the entire country by the end of 2019.
There can be no doubt that Challenge TB Tajikistan has made great inroads to combat MDR-TB, however access to healthy, nutritious food is still a major issue and one that KNCV Tuberculosis Foundation feels passionate about.
TB, food and Machiton Hospital
Good nutrition has long been an important part of the treatment for TB. Common symptoms of the disease, including weight and appetite loss, can constitute a vicious cycle further putting the patient’s life at risk. Yet due to monetary constraints, patients undergoing treatment for MDR-TB at the Machiton Hospital in Tajikistan are provided with only one cup of soup a day in addition to bread and tea. This is simply not enough to meet the nutritional needs for these patients.
The hospital has done much to improve the situation by obtaining a cow, which the locals help to milk and grow their own vegetables. Unfortunately, this is only a stop-gap measure until a more sustainable solution can be found.
Photos of the vegetables grown and the food produced for the MDR-TB patients at Machiton Hospital.
Sponsor Us and Support Good Nutrition in Tajikistan
KNCV would like to aid the hospital and patients as they work to curb MDR-TB in Tajikistan.
On March 11th KNCV employees will lace up their running shoes to participate in the City-Pier-City (CPC) Run in The Hague, one of the largest running events in the Netherlands. All our runners are seeking sponsorship, which will fund healthy and nutritious meals to the MDR-TB patients at Machiton Hospital.
Donations are welcome via the Pay-It-Forward website. Please support our runners and help MDR-TB patients get the healthy food they so desperately need!