Communities can help arrest asthma, TB

Building capacity at primary health care level can significantly reduce the threat of respiratory illnesses in the country in the face of booming population, experts have argued.

Acting executive director for Research for Equity and Community Health (Reach) Trust Hastings Banda said health report findings show that patients presenting with cough exert a huge burden on out- patient department (OPD) services, and yet there are many problems in management of patients with respiratory symptoms in the department.

He was speaking on Tuesday in Lilongwe when presenting certificates to 17 Health Surveillance Assistants (HSAs) and patient attendants from health facilities across Dowa and Ntchisi districts that were drilled in spirometry for the detection and management of respiratory illnesses at primary health care level.

Deputy director for preventive health services at the Ministry of Health Doreen Ali hailed Reach Trust for promoting scientific health research, adding the organisation has been instrumental in helping shape health policies for the poor in the country. n