Urging doctors to take care of tuberculosis patients till they are cured completely, the Indian Medical Association (IMA) today asked them to also notify such patients.
At a workshop attended by 100 general practitioners, the IMA appealed to all its members to ask themselves the question "I have notified TB patient today, have you?"
"Not notifying TB patient is not only a public hazard but also a violation of Medical Council of India Act and can lead to suspension of license of a doctor," said Dr K K Aggarwal, Secretary General of IMA.
Dr Aggarwal further said that it is not only important to notify TB patients, but equally important to follow the patient till he or she is cured.
"Most symptoms will disappear within a few weeks of treatment and there is a tendency for patients to stop treatment. Incomplete treatment can end up being drug resistance case which may not only be lethal to the patient, but also be a health hazard to the community," he said.
IMA lauded the initiative by Bollywood actor Amitabh Bachhan who openly said that he had suffered from abdominal TB in the past.
Experts at the workshop said all pregnant ladies and lactating mothers suffering from TB should be given full treatment. Every patient of HIV should be followed for possible development of TB in the future.
IMA also released two slogans: "If an elderly patient develops diabetes - think of TB" and "If a middle aged person develops TB - think of diabetes".
World TB Day will be observed across India tomorrow.
