Report on the 2022 Virtual Town Hall Meeting
Summary:
In 2022, the online TBPPM community has continued supporting cross-country learning on a variety of PPM-related topics, focused on strengthening the Country chapters and developed a TBPPM Course (first run in Feb’22). A new grant from the Gates Foundation (July 2022 – June 2025) focuses on sustaining the TBPPM Learning Network.
The Virtual Town Hall which was conducted on 8 December 2022, was an opportunity for the online community to come together and review progress made since the launch and highlight the achievements of 2022. The community members shared plans and priorities for 2023, and we celebrated the winners of the 2022 Photo-contest as well as the top 3 most active members on the TBPPM platform.
Objectives:
- To create an opportunity for community members to come together
- To offer a platform to share opinions and feedback on the progress and plans of the TBPPM Learning Network
- Discuss and set joint areas of interest for learning and sharing in 2023
Over 70 people registered for the Town Hall discussion and 45 people joined live.
Quick overview of key Town Hall Introductions
- Madhu Pai, chair PPM Working Group meeting and professor at McGill University, opened the meeting by highlighting the global TB situation and the need for an urgent scale-up of access to TB diagnostics (WHO will release a new report in a few months) and shorter drug regimens (1/4/6x24 campaign) for all.
- Priyanka Aiyer (Global Coalition of TB Activists) introduced the video with strong messages from TB survivors that were produced for the opening of the Union Conference – The video was well received in the Town Hall.
Panel discussion on PPM implementation
|
|
Golibe Ugochukwu, Sr program officer at KNCV Nigeria highlighted the fantastic progress in Nigeria with case notifications, especially from the private providers, despite the pandemic. He outlined the hub & spokes model that PPM stakeholders use in Nigeria to engage private providers, drug sellers/ chemists and stand-alone laboratories using a variety of non-financial and financial incentives. Challenges remain with human and financial resources and further reaching people affected by TB in rural areas. |
|
|
|
Michael Macharia, Technical advisor for TB service delivery, Komesha TB, Kenya outlined the engagement of diverse faith-based organizations in Kenya, liaising and ensuring that linked health facilities have diagnostic tools (GeneXpert, Xray and TrueNaat). These tools as well as the TB drugs are provided through the NTP. Komesha TB serves as the linkage and ensures education, quality control, and training. The program has seen improved case-finding. |
|
|
|
Mohammed Yassin, Sr TB Advisor, Global Fund to fight AIDS, TB and Malaria Announced the successful replenishment resulting in 15.7 billion USD for the new strategic plan 23-27, which includes private sector engagement as a priority area. New grants are going to be disbursed as of March 2023 and additional/matching funding is available for ongoing PPM projects. Analysis in 11 countries has shown that the private sector contributes 18% to the notification of TB, and 11% of overall Global Fund funding in TB goes to the private sector initiative. All PPM stakeholders are encouraged to start planning and developing proposals to scale up programs. |
|
|
|
Adithya Wicaksono, TB PPM advisor for the NTP, Indonesia outlined the ongoing PPM work in Indonesia in engaging all health facilities and multi-sectoral engagement. The joint monitoring mission is currently ongoing in Indonesia. The country has shown remarkable leadership in the G20 discussions and raised the profile of TB in political discussions including a strong link to UHC. |
|
|
|
Rabia Abeid, Head of M&E, TB & Business Development @ SHDEPHA+Kahama Highlighted the work in Tanzania with the mining populations engaging the private mining sector as part of the diagnosis and care programs and training. She also emphasized the engagement of mining communities and informal providers in awareness raising, education and social support. |
|
|
|
Puniteswar, M&E Associate at Resource Group for Education and Advocacy for Community Health (REACH) outlined the work that REACH does on prevention and TB preventive treatment, where private providers are engaged in the screening. |
The TBPPM Team shortly presented key achievements in 2022 and provided an overview of the framework for the next year.
Three key questions guided larger discussions with the full audience inputting their thoughts on a whiteboard. Many good thoughts were shared.
- What were the key PPM achievements in your country or organization in 2022 (new projects/partnerships, etc.)?
- What should be the priorities for PPM in 2023?
- What support and collaboration do you need in 2023?
Winners 2022 TBPPM Photo contest were shown. The photos are showcasing the frontline work of healthcare providers, community workers, and PPM implementers, often in situations of hardship. Thanks to the judges for their thoughtful selection!
Congratulations to the most active members of the TBPPM Learning Network digital platform:
🎉 Ravindra Nath
🎉 Tom Muyunga-Mukasa
🎉 Michael Macharia
Thanks go out to all community members for your continuous engagement
Closing of the meeting
Guy Stallworthy, Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation provided an overview of progress in the various countries, emphasizing that the increase in case notification from the private sector is great, but we can't forget to focus on quality. He encouraged countries to step up the PPM work and pointed out that the PPM Dashboard being developed by WHO will be an opportunity for better tracking data and providing needed accountability. With many countries facing disasters and unrest, as well as financial constraints he urges stakeholders to do more with less and therefore focuses and be efficient in key tasks. Highlights the challenge to bring in primary healthcare providers and extend services beyond hospitals.
Caroline Mburu, TB Survivor in Kenya – closed the meeting with a message to all community members to involve people with lived experience, as they provide unique insights and show hope to everyone that there is life with TB and hope for a full recovery.
Thanks to everyone for joining today's Town Hall. It was so great to have your input, see your faces and hear your thoughts. Wish everyone a great rest of 2022 with all the Seasons greetings! We all look very much forward to seeing you again next year and strengthening our collaborative efforts to End TB and engage all healthcare providers in quality TB care.