World TB Day 2009

Project HOPE began working to fight tuberculosis (TB) disease in Kazakhstan in 1993, piloting early DOTS programs, which are the current international standards for TB control. In the 1990s, the break up of the Soviet Union led to serious deterioration in the health systems in Central Asian Republics (CAR), leading to poor health outcomes and drastic increases in the number of reported TB cases.

By 2001, Project HOPE was working with TB programs in all five CAR countries (Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan) and is currently implementing the largest and most comprehensive TB program in the region. By training health providers on DOTS, improving TB case management through monitoring and supportive supervision, strengthening the laboratory network and conducting community education and mobilization activities, Project HOPE has worked with the CAR countries to improve TB control.

Read about Asya and Ahmed.... a nurse in Uzbekistan and a TB patient who benefited from Project HOPE training.