|
Thailand: Support for migrant communities |
|
|
|
Media centre
|
The fight against drug-resistant tuberculosis among migrants in Thailand’s border areas is being stepped up following a Global Fund award of US$9.3m to World Vision.
The five-year programme will lead to not just a better understanding of the spread of TB in border hotspots, but result in teams of volunteers being trained to spot cases and help the sick complete their treatment regimes, as well as ensure legal and illegal migrants gain access treatment at Thai public health facilities.
The potentially deadly respiratory disease has been virtually eradicated in developed countries but remains prevalent in border areas where six-month observed treatment (DOT) is not widely implemented.
Tuberculosis is one of the top ten causes of death in Thailand and, together with HIV and AIDS, is a major obstacle to social and economic development. Border areas are susceptible to drug-resistant strains of TB, especially among migrant populations because they have either poor or inconsistent access to health care or fail to complete their TB medication regimes.
The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria (GFATM) awarded US$9.3m to World Vision Foundation of Thailand (WVFT) as part of a US$19.6 proposal that is shared between World Vision and the Thai government’s Ministry of Public Health. The programmes target respectively migrant workers and Thai workplace populations. Both entities are principal recipients, receiving and managing the grant that was awarded this month.
The five-year World Vision programme will focus on six border provinces where the incidence of TB is substantially higher than the national average of 142 cases per 100,000 of population.
In Mae Sot (Tak), northwest Thailand, where the situation is at its worst, large numbers of legal and illegal migrants enter Thailand for short-term employment or healthcare before returning home to Myanmar. Their susceptibility and that of their families to the disease has been difficult to assess or treat.
World Vision Foundation of Thailand and the American Refugee Committee (ARC) will implement the WV-managed programme. Other provinces where they will work among migrant populations include Kanchanaburi, Phuket, Phang Nga, Ranong and Chumporn.
WVFT’s Global Fund Principal Recipient manager, Dr Jaruwaree Snidwongse, who helped design the project, said the true picture of tuberculosis in these border communities is little known.
“TB prevalence is particularly difficult to assess because of the transient nature of migrant workers in these areas,” said Dr Jaruwaree. “We just do not know enough about the prevalence of TB among migrants and it is critically important that we do because TB deaths are rising as the bacteria becomes immune to existing treatments. If migrants are not treated properly not only will they be at increased risk but so will the wider populations of Myanmar and Thailand. Many thousands of migrants, including children, are in real need of protection and treatment.”
The programme aims to reach 135,000 non-Thai migrants with treatment, education or services, with spin-off benefits for another estimated 200,000.
World Vision Foundation of Thailand has been operational in Thailand for more than 30 years, and working on migrant issues for more than 15. It currently runs mobile and stationary health clinics in a number of border locations. The organization also works on a range of other issues, including community development, child protection, education, health, micro-enterprise and emergency relief, when disasters strike, and is present in 50 provinces.
|
