The Ministry has determined the National Tuberculosis Center as the focal point for this purpose and has asked the private medical colleges and nursing homes to send the names to the center.
The Center has directed the Medical Directors at all the 18 medical colleges run in the private sector to establish a separate Directly Observed Treatment Shortcourse (DOTS) unit at their colleges and send the names of TB patients receiving treatment there.
According to Rajendra Panta, Director at the National Tuberculosis Center, it is estimated that approximately 48 thousand TB patients are added to the already existing TB population each year.
Of this number, only some 39 thousand TB patients come to the DOTS centers run by the Center and avail of free treatment and medicines.
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