Treatment success rates among tuberculosis patients notified from the private sector in West Bengal, India.

In India, an estimated 50% of tuberculosis (TB) patients are diagnosed and managed by private providers (PPs). However, there is limited information on treatment outcomes among those treated by PPs largely because of a lack of systems for patient follow-up and documentation of the outcomes. Tuberculosis Health Action Learning Initiative (THALI) project implemented in six districts of West Bengal, supported PPs in managing TB patients and systematically documented the TB treatment outcomes of such patients. This provided us an opportunity to describe the treatment outcomes and assess factors associated with 'unsuccessful outcomes' among TB patients notified by PPs from January to April 2018. This was a retrospective cohort study using routinely collected data. During the study reference period, 2347 patients were notified from 389 PPs. The patient's mean (SD) age was 39.9 (17.2) years and 61% were males. Of the total, about 86% had pulmonary TB, 95% were new cases, and 23% were microbiologically confirmed (either on sputum smear microscopy or Xpert assay). Among 2347 patients, 19% received free drugs from the National Tuberculosis Program (NTP) under the supervision of PPs while the rest purchased anti-TB drugs from the private pharmacies. The 'successful outcomes' (cured and treatment completed) were seen in 86.1% (95% confidence interval (CI), 84.6%-87.4%) patients and 8.6% were 'not evaluated'. The patients who received free NTP drugs (adjusted relative risk-4.0 (95% CI: 3.1-5.0)) had a higher risk of 'unsuccessful outcomes' than those who availed of drugs from private pharmacies. The high 'successful outcomes' among TB patients treated by PPs are promising. However, higher 'unsuccessful outcomes' among patients on free NTP drugs need to be explored, and suitable corrective actions have to be taken.

Active Case Finding for Tuberculosis through TOUCH Agents in Selected High TB Burden Wards of Kolkata, India: A Mixed Methods Study on Outcomes and Implementation Challenges.

Active case finding (ACF) for tuberculosis (TB) was implemented in 60 selected high TB burden wards of Kolkata, India. Community volunteers called TOUCH (Targeted Outreach for Upliftment of Community Health) agents (TAs) identified and referred presumptive TB patients (PTBPs) to health facilities for TB diagnosis and treatment. We aimed to describe the "care cascade" of PTBPs that were identified during July to December 2018 and to explore the reasons for attrition as perceived by TAs and PTBPs. An explanatory mixed-methods study with a quantitative phase of cohort study using routinely collected data followed by descriptive qualitative study with in-depth interviews was conducted. Of the 3,86242 individuals that were enumerated, 1132 (0.3%) PTBPs were identified. Only 713 (63.0%) PTBPs visited a referred facility for TB diagnosis. TB was diagnosed in 177 (24.8%). The number needed to screen for one TB patient was 2183 individuals. The potential reasons for low yield were stigma and apprehension about TB, distrust about TA, wage losses for attending health facilities, and substance abuse among PTBPs. The yield of ACF was suboptimal with low PTBP identification rate and a high attrition rate. Interviewing each individual for symptoms of TB and supporting PTBPs for diagnosis through sputum collection and transport can be adopted to improve the yield.