Department of Health receives funding to enhance Tuberculosis control

The Department of Health’s (DOH) Tuberculosis Control Program has been awarded a grant from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, totaling $166,810 annually for the next two years. Hawaii was one of only three states to receive this grant, which will support a project entitled "Improving Tuberculosis (TB) Contact Investigations in Foreign-Born Populations."

Contact Investigation is a standard strategy for TB control that aims to stop the spread of TB at the source case. For every new tuberculosis patient in Hawaii, a TB outreach team works closely with the patient’s household, social, and occupational contacts in preventing the spread of additional tuberculosis. Contacts of cases are offered free TB testing, evaluation, and TB preventive medicine if necessary.

Activities funded by this grant focus on foreign-born TB patients and their contacts. In 2001, 83% of Hawaii’s TB cases were found among people who were born outside of the U.S. This percentage of foreign-born TB cases ranks high when compared to the mainland.

"Hawaii’s TB rate is the one of the highest in the nation with a high proportion of foreign-born cases, which means we must take an aggressive approach to TB control," says Dr. Jessie Wing, chief of the state’s Tuberculosis Program. "This grant is an opportunity to improve Contact Investigations among all foreign-born populations, both in Hawaii and on the mainland."

For further information, please contact the Tuberculosis Control Program at 832-5731.

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