Activities – tbassnindia

Activities of the Tuberculosis Association of India

The present major activities of the TAI are :

Providing quality diagnostic and treatment services through the New Delhi TB Centre.
Complementing supplementing Revised National Tuberclosis Control Program
( NTEP ), (Directly Observed Treatement Shord Course) DOTs services of Government of India ( GoI ). No new units are to be established to avoid costs and duplication.

Health education is aimed at:

increasing public awareness about the disease,
involvement of the community leaders in the control efforts and
enlisting cooperation of patients and their families in seeking proper diagnosis & to complete treatment till cure.

TAI does not receive any Government grants for its activities. A TB Seal Campaign which is inaugurated every year on 2nd October by the President of India who is the Patron of TAI. A TB Seal costs 5 rupees and carries a message about tuberculosis. Last year the Association was able to sell 1.8 crores of TB seals. 90% of the collections are retained in the States for grass-roots activities and TAI receive 10% for its activities. TAI also gets donations from the public.
Technical education by way of holding national and state level conferences which serve the scientific purpose of updating knowledge of tuberculosis workers besides providing a platform to researchers to interact. It may be mentioned that tuberculosis research in India has provided the basis of national tuberculosis control programme the world over.

The Indian Journal of Tuberculosis is published quarterly. It is an authoritative and only Journal devoted to tuberculosis, along with other chest diseases.
Since 1975, the TAI has established a Research Fund from contributions received from the states to provide financial assistance for research proposals forwarded by them, along with technical guidance and to publish the findings in the Indian Journal of Tuberculosis.

Establishment of a full fledged Health Education Cell in the TAI. The Cell will have material production equipment as well as one Health Education Expert, a publicity officer and an office hand. Health education material prepared by the Cell, translated in regional languages will be used to push NTP/NTEP.
Being a mother NGO it offers an umbrella cover for various NGOs for their activities in the field of tuberculosis control. This will need the TAI
I) to publish a complete directory of these institutions,
ii) produce a variety of booklets, pamphlets, etc. with updated information on tuberculosis for use of NGOs and
iii) catalogue the contributions being made by NGOs to TB control.