• India

India is missing more than 36% of its 2,790,000 people estimated to have developed drug-sensitive TB in 2016. During the same year, 76% of its 147,000 its people estimated to have developed drug-resistant TB were also missed by the health system.

To find more of its missing people with TB, India is significantly expanding its private sector engagement for addressing quality of care among patients through Private Provider Support Agencies (PPSAs) in 32 urban cities and 356 towns. The intensified activities that are carried out under this model include close coordination with private practitioners, linkages for free diagnostics as well as drugs and treatment support to ensure improved treatment outcomes of TB patients seeking care in the private sector. The eNikshay platform, supported through a national call center and digital tools used by field staff and health care providers, is the digital cornerstone for facilitating engagement, user-friendly patient reporting, treatment adherence monitoring as well as for financial transactions. Operating through a toll-free number, the call center serves as the hub for data exchange with patients as well as liaises with the different private health care providers. This way, TB notification, linkage of diagnostic and treatment services, treatment adherence support and treatment outcome reporting of TB patients in the private sector is ensured and TB surveillance of the private sector strengthened at the same time.

In addition, the country is expanding its active case finding to 120 million people, who have been mapped based on geographic and social risks. Systematic active TB case finding in key populations through house-to-house visits is India’s key for actively finding its missing people with TB. Active case finding is also strengthened through the deployment of mobile vans equipped with GeneXpert systems. Chest x-ray will be used for screening and GeneXpert as diagnostic tool to ensure more effective active case finding.