DOTS PROVIDERS PERCEPTIONS OF BARRIERS TO TUBERCULOSIS CARE IN CHANDIGARH, NORTH INDIA
Dr. Sandeep Singh Sarpal*, Dr. Naveen Krishan Goel, Dr. Dinesh Kumar, Dr. A. K. Janmeja, Dr. Abhiruchi Galhotra and Dr. Sonia Puri
ABSTRACT
India is the second-most populous country in the world; one fourth of the global incident TB cases occur in India annually. Health care worker‟s knowledge, attitudes and perceptions about Tuberculosis play an important role in their ability to diagnose and care for individuals with Tuberculosis. The present study reports findings from a descriptive qualitative study seeking to explore barriers to effective health care provision of TB services in Chandigarh from the point of view of providers. Materials and Methods: A descriptive qualitative study was conducted from March 2012 up to September 2012. The principal research questions asked were: from a provider‟s perspective, what are the barriers to care for people suffering from TB? This was done using a pre designed, pre-tested questionnaire which was used to collect the relevant information from all the DOT providers. Besides this focused group discussions (FGD) were held with DOTS workers. A total of 115 DOTS workers were interviewed. Results: Out of 115 DOTS providers 60(52.2%) were females and 55(47.8%) were males. All of the DOT providers were aware that pulmonary tuberculosis is a communicable disease. All DOT providers knew that TB spread by droplets. 67(58.3%) said drowsiness was the most common side effect complained by patients after initiation of therapy. 111(96.5%) DOTS providers believed there is need to spread more information regarding DOTS. 100(87%) perceived alcohol as a reason for default. TB was perceived by the majority of respondents as a „social disease‟ requiring multi-sector collaboration. Conclusions: This study has elicited the perceptions of DOTS providers on the multiple barriers to diagnosis and treatment of TB in Chandigarh.
Keywords: FGD, DOTS, TB.
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