Lodwar – August 16, 2024 (Public Communications and Media Relations)

The County Department of Health and Sanitation, through its Tuberculosis (TB) Program, has integrated screening for pediatric TB at nutrition clinics, as malnourished children are predisposed to this highly infectious disease.

A three-day training, supported by USAID Nawiri, targeted nutritionists and nurses from 40 facilities along the lake zone—selected for having the highest number of malnutrition cases. The training focused on diagnosis, interventions, and reporting.

“The plan is to scale up this initiative to other facilities with high malnutrition caseloads,” said Saada Lokoyon, Director of Nutrition and Dietetics, while closing the training.

According to County Tuberculosis, Leprosy, and Lung Diseases Coordinator, Dr Job Okemwa, TB screening for malnourished children was a missed opportunity in active case finding, as Turkana has both a high burden of TB and malnutrition.

The National TB Program indicated that Turkana County’s TB prevalence stands at 345 per 100,000, while the 2024 SMART survey revealed that the Global Accute Malnutrition (GAM) rate stood at 21.75%.

“Last year, the 342 pediatric cases (aged 0 to 14 years) in the county accounted for 29% of the total TB cases. This is above the WHO recommended 15% for pediatric cases,” he said.

USAID Nawiri’s Field Health and Nutrition Advisor, Hellen Okochil, highlighted that some TB patients were also malnourished. She added that TB screening at nutrition clinics would reduce some of the non-response and relapse malnourish cases as they would get the correct diagnosis.