Stop Using Herbal Medicine To Treat TB - Health Director

The Volta Regional Director of Health Services, Dr. Joseph Teye Nuertey, has cautioned Ghanaians against the use of unapproved traditional herbal medicines for the treatment of tuberculosis (TB). According to him, there has not been any proof that herbal medicine is potent enough to cure the disease and urged Ghanaians to be proactive to their health needs and report cases of people suffering from tuberculosis (TB) to health authorities, since the disease is curable and free. Dr. Teye Nuertey explained that those who use unapproved herbal medicines for the treatment of TB and other diseases were risking their lives because records indicate that people who used these herbal medicines for longer periods, normally develop kidney problems and eventually die. He, therefore, advised that proper medical care be sought at health facilities for TB, which treatment, he noted, was expensive but free. The Volta Regional Director of Health Services, who expressed concern about TB cases in the Volta region noted that health officials in the region were facing serious challenges in providing treatment and cure for people suffering from the disease, as those who were put on drugs normally refused to cooperate with health personnel by not taking the drugs and would not complete treatment directives prescribed by health authorities. Dr. Teye Nuertey, who was speaking at the launch of World Tuberculosis Day celebration in the Volta region at the regional capital, Ho, recently noted that the health authorities were also facing a development he described as �multi drug resistance TB�, where TB patients do not respond to drugs. According to him, victims showed signs of positive response during initial stages of treatment, but developed resistance to the drugs. He announced that in 2013, the region recorded four multi-drug resistance TB cases in the region stressing that the situation posed serious health challenges to the Regional Health Directorate. He revealed that 14 more of multi-drug resistance TB cases were being monitored and called on the people to cooperate with health workers in dealing with the situation. The Volta Regional Director of Health Services stressed the need for Ghanaians to take issues concerning their health more serious noting that people should encourage their friends and relatives who cough more than two weeks to visit health facilities to be tested for TB. The Ho Municipal Chief Executive, Mrs. Fafa Adinyirah, who read a speech on behalf of the Regional Minister, Madam Helen Adwoa Ntoso, commended health workers in the region for their hard work that led to the tremendous improvement in the health sector in the region. She stressed the need for the people to cooperate with health authorities in their efforts to provide cure for TB victims. The Paramount Chief of the Ziavi traditional area, Togbega Koku Ayim IV who chaired the programme urged all to be on the alert to report TB cases for early treatment in order to save people from contracting the disease.