Research Article
Directly Observed Treatment Strategy Still a Challenge in Tuberculosis Control: The South African Plight
Winifred Nohaji, Nobesuthu Sokhela and Nomathemba Nonkelela*
Walter Sisulu University, Mthatha, Province of Eastern Cape, South Africa
- *Corresponding Author:
- Nomathemba Nonkelela, RN, PhD
Walter Sisulu University, Mthatha
Province of Eastern Cape, South Africa
Tel: +27 47 502 2746
Fax: +27 86 497 7327
E-mail: nnonkelela@wsu.ac.za
Received date: June 24, 2016; Accepted date: August 24, 2016; Published date: August 31, 2016
Citation: Nohaji W, Sokhela N, Nonkelela N (2016) Directly Observed Treatment Strategy Still a Challenge in Tuberculosis Control: The South African Plight. J Comm Pub Health Nurs 2:136. doi:10.4172/2471-9846.1000136
Copyright: ©2016 Nohaji W, et al. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.
Abstract
The challenges in the management of tuberculosis (TB) are clearly manifested by the escalating numbers of not only the ordinary tuberculosis but also the drug resistant forms of TB, namely MDR-(Multi-Drug Resistance) and XDR-TB (Extreme Drug Resistance-Tuberculosis). The management of tuberculosis in SA and the whole world has been ranked as a priority due to its impact on health and economy. The effectiveness of Directly Observed Treatment Strategy (DOTS) as a strategy for the control of TB and its treatment is affected by a variety of socioeconomic issues around the world and particularly in the developing countries. This study was conducted to highlight the challenges faced by the country in the control tuberculosis even in the implementation of the directly observed treatment strategy.