The Ministry of Health launched today (Thursday) the National Tuberculosis Manual at the Intercity Hotel, Muscat.

The launching ceremony was held under the auspices of H.E. Dr. Mohammed Saif Al Hosni, MOH’s Undersecretary for Health Affairs, and presence of H.E. Dr. Jean Jabbour, Representative of World Health Organization in Oman, along with number of concerned senior officials from different health sectors in the Sultanate of Oman.

The National TB Manual is prepared by the Directorate General for Disease Surveillance and Control in collaboration with experts of various fields related to prevention, diagnosis, treatment, pharmacy, and primary, secondary, and tertiary care provision. The Manual is part of implementing the National Strategy for Elimination of Tuberculosis and is aligned with its pillars namely Detect, Treat, Prevent and Promote. It represents a scientific reference to the health workers in this field.

The event further included a training workshop that targeted all focal points in the Governorates to train them on the community DOT (Directly Observed Therapy) protocols and methods for implementation.

Specialist at the  DGDSC stated that today’s event is a culmination of years of continues joint work with the healthcare workers concerned with the TB in public and private sectors to provide a better health care for community various segments.

The specialist affirmed that TB is preventable and curable. All members in the community must be aware of this fact to end stigmatization and discrimination of TB, adding that awareness should be also raised on the importance of diagnosing and treating latent TB in the high-risk groups such as close contacts with TB cases particularly children, people coming from high-incidence countries, as well immunocompromised patients. 

Furthermore, the MOH official emphasized that efforts should be incorporated on individual, community, or institutions level to add to the global efforts aiming at ending this silent pandemic, along with investing in scientific research and prevention methods of TB such as effective vaccines in order to achieve the desired goals.

Despite efforts exerted to end TB, COVID-19 pandemic undermined the progress achieved in this regard. Following a decade and more of steady decline, deaths due to TB have increased in 2020.

Sultanate of Oman is a low-incidence country (defined as <10 TB cases per 100,000), there was approximately 2% drop in TB cases in past decade (5.2 /100,000 in 2021), and (26) deaths due to TB were recorded in 2021.

The Sultanate of Oman has launched the National Strategy for Elimination of Tuberculosis, which will be carried out in phases to achieve a reduction in the incidence rate of TB to fewer than 100 cases per million population by 2035  to progress further towards “pre-elimination” of TB. This will require a 90% reduction in the incidence of TB and a 95% reduction in the number of deaths due to TB based on the epidemiological situation in 2015.