The Ministryof Public Health and the Kenya Medical Research Institute plan to decentralise testing services for the multi drug resistance (MDR) tuberculosis to ease congestion at the central TB testing unit. The directorof the National Leprosy and TB Control Programme the in Kenya, Joseph Sitienei, said the planwill also provide high quality services to Kenyans and escalate the fight against the disease.
The American Center for Disease Control is a partner in this project. Sitienei said the central reference laboratory in Nairobi, which conducts TB culture and sensitivitytesting across the country, is overburdened and this new collaboration will help ease this bottle neck. The MoU for the Sh8.9 million programme funded by Kemri/CDC HIV Implementation Science and Services will be signed in Kisumu today.
The MoU will authorise Kemri/CDC's TB research laboratory to diagnose MDR TB in Nyanza and Western provinces for 2,000 patients every year. Albert Okumu Ochieng, the Kemri/CDC TB lab manager, said the lab has the capacity to conduct high quality diagnosis and surveillance. "It has well trained staff and superior modern facilities which is crucial for investigating MDR TB cases. This will reduce the turnaround time especially for specimens from Nyanza province," said Okumu.
Kemri/CDC addresses the region's toughest health problems at their source, directly working with vulnerable families and communities in local hospitals, clinics and laboratories. It also works in strong partnership with local, national, and regional partners. This new partnership will also seeKemri/CDC's TB research laboratory train staff from the central reference laboratory to help build their capacity.
By Samuel Otieno
allAfrica.com