Tuberculosis awareness efforts also include a series of prominently placed billboards, sponsored by local and global partners including I-TECH.
In Ethiopia, I-TECH has enlisted local journalists to help fight stigma, promote prevention, and encourage discussion about tuberculosis (TB), an often-overlooked disease that continues to exact a toll on Ethiopia’s health and communities.
The effort began with a recent training for 30 journalists from around the country. Together, they spoke with I-TECH experts about the science of the disease and reviewed basic information on prevention, treatment, multi-drug resistant TB, and HIV and TB coinfection. Because TB has been a public health problem for centuries in Ethiopia, misconceptions about the disease are common. Therefore, participants also spent a session discussing these assumptions.
“There is no better time than now to bring national attention back to the tuberculosis epidemic in this country,” said Dr. Nega G/Yesus, I-TECH Ethiopia deputy country director. “And that can not be realized without the involvement of the media.”
Dr. Daniel Fiseha, chief organizer of the media training and I-TECH Ethiopia TB/HIV and HCT advisor, noted that the event will also need to be accompanied by future action.”The training will only succeed only if these strategies are converted into action in the year to come,” he said, stressing that I-TECH and the Regional Health Bureau will create a follow-up mechanism to evaluate the true impact of the training.
Although media outlets in Ethiopia (as in all countries) tend to be quick to take up stories about HIV, tuberculosis receives little coverage. I-TECH and journalists noted that this is surprising given the high toll the disease exacts on the country’s people. Bringing the disease to the forefront of the media landscape may increase nationwide visibility and promote prevention and treatment.
I-TECH also recognizes that journalists working in limited-resource settings face unique challenges. During the training, participating journalists discussed the daily challenges they face in their work, but remained upbeat about the future. Certainly, any successful reduction in new TB cases will benefit from their commitment and dedication.
The training concluded with a certificate award ceremony officiated by actor, artist, and TB Goodwill Ambassador to Ethiopia, Fikadu T/Mariam.
Learn more about I-TECH’s work in Ethiopia.
