Original Research
An audit of diagnosis and treatment of tuberculosis in Ethiopia
Submitted: 15 August 2013 | Published: 13 August 2014
About the author(s)
Valerie J. Ehlers, Department of Health Studies, University of South Africa, South AfricaGetahun S. Aragaw, Department of Health Studies, University of South Africa, South Africa
Abstract
Aim: To evaluate healthcare providers’ implementation of Ethiopia’s NTG during the diagnosis and treatment of tuberculosis in order to enhance tuberculosis treatment outcomes.
Methods: A descriptive, cross-sectional study design was used.
Results: Healthcare providers implemented the NTG during tuberculosis diagnosis for female (60.9%; n = 67) and male (56.1%; n = 69) patients. The correct numbers of anti-tuberculosis pills, complying with the NTG recommendations, were prescribed for 91.8% (n = 101) of the women and for 90.2% (n = 111) of the men. However, both over- and under-prescriptions of anti-tuberculosis drugs occurred. There was an over-diagnosis of smear-negative pulmonary tuberculosis. Only 2.6% (n = 2) of the 76 smear-negative pulmonary tuberculosis patients had been diagnosed correctly.
Conclusion: Implementation of the NTG should be enhanced, especially with regard to the diagnosis of smear-negative pulmonary tuberculosis patients and the correct prescription of anti-tuberculosis drugs. This would help to increase the number of correctly-diagnosed and -treated tuberculosis patients, improve tuberculosis treatment outcomes, decrease the spread of tuberculosis and prevent the development of multi-drug-resistant tuberculosis strains.
Keywords
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Crossref Citations
1. Análise espacial e temporal da incidência da tuberculose em Guiné-Bissau, 2018 a 2020
Adelia Roberto Nanque, Antônio Carlos Vieira Ramos, Heriederson Sávio Dias Moura, Thaís Zamboni Berra, Reginaldo Bazon Vaz Tavares, Aline Aparecida Monroe, Ione Carvalho Pinto, Ricardo Alexandre Arcêncio
Revista Brasileira de Enfermagem vol: 76 issue: 4 year: 2023
doi: 10.1590/0034-7167-2022-0481pt