Finding TB cases by the Reaching Urban Poor Approach
"Mainam talaga na katuwang ang mga organisasyon sa barangay sa pagpapalaganap ng impormasyon tungkol sa TB at programa sa health center, nang sa ganun ay maipamahagi agad sa nakakarami ang epekto ng TB sa komunidad (It is much better if local organizations are involved in disseminating information about TB and the services that health centers could provide. This way, more people will know immediately what the effects of TB in the community are). This was the insight shared by Evelyn Maglaque, a councilor of Barangay Tatalon in Quezon City, Philippines.
Tuberculosis is more prevalent in high-risk population such as the urban poor. This is the reason why the urban poor community in Tatalon was identified as one of the project sites of Collaboration for Additional TB cases through Contacts and Hospitals against TB (CATCH TB cases) project.
CATCH project, which is managed by the National TB Program and funded by the World Health Organization (WHO) and Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA), supported the implementation of intensifying TB case finding in 17 barangays of Quezon, Caloocan, Malabon and Taguig City in Metro Manila. Around 150,000 urban poor population was covered by the project in 2011.
The Philippine Department of Health (DOH), selected non-government organizations (NGOs) and local government units (LGUs) worked together for the project. Four NGOs were selected and worked in the following cities: Institute of Politics and Governance (IPG), for Quezon City; Rotary Club of Kaloocan Central, for Caloocan City; Philippine NGO Support Program (PHANSuP, and Samahan ng Mamamayan Zone One Tondo Organization (SM-ZOTO), for Malabon City; and Simbayanan ni Maria, for Taguig City.