%0 Journal Article
%T Perspectives of Stakeholders on the Sustainability of Tuberculosis Control Programme in Ghana
%A Joshua Amo-Adjei
%J Tuberculosis Research and Treatment
%D 2013
%I Hindawi Publishing Corporation
%R 10.1155/2013/419385
%X Objectives. To solicit the views of some key stakeholders involved in TB control in Ghana on the sustainability of the current programme and corresponding interventions and to further discuss these views in the context of improving and/or ensuring the sustainability of existing interventions and structures. Methods. The study employed an interpretivist (qualitative) approach in order to obtain the ˇ°livedˇ± experiences of personnel who are involved in TB control, either directly or indirectly. Purposive sampling was applied to select 19 respondents who provided data for the study through in-depth interviews (IDIs). The IDI data was analysed inductively in a progressive manner. Thus, respective codes were allowed to emerge from the data as opposed to deductive coding where themes are precoded. Results. The findings reveal two main strands of views about the sustainability of the current TB control programmes: optimism and pessimism. The optimists revealed that the integration of TB into the generalised health system, integration of TB and HIV control services, the use of internally generated funds of health facilities, and a general improvement in socioeconomic conditions of the general population could provide positive pathways to sustainability. The pessimists on the other hand noted that the existing programme was not likely to be sustainable so long as much of the operational funds were derived from external sources. Largely, the views of the pessimists were influenced by their past experiences in TB control. Conclusions. This paper has shown both opportunities and threats to sustainability of TB control in Ghana. The opportunities and threats could be managed positively depending on how policy actors respond to the issues raised. 1. Introduction Despite the fact that tuberculosis (TB) is curable, it accounts for the highest proportion of deaths caused by infectious diseases globally [1]. In 2011, there were about 8.7 million cases and 14% of these were coinfected with HIV. Of the new cases, approximately 1.4 million died. In the last few years, however, significant progress has been made in halting and reversing the spread of TB as a response to the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). For instance, between 2010 and 2011, new cases of TB declined by about 2.2% and compared to 1990 data, TB mortality has reduced by approximately 45%. Indeed the TB related MDG has been achieved. But notwithstanding these notable achievements, the burden of TB still remains unacceptable to the public health community [1]. The question presently engaging the attention of
%U http://www.hindawi.com/journals/trt/2013/419385/