GeneXpert machine on its way to Pakxan Hospital

We are delighted to announce that a new GeneXpert machine is now on its way to the main hospital of Bolikhamxay Province in Pakxan, the Province’s capital. HPP Laos facilitated the process of securing funding for the equipment and organized its shipment from France to Lao PDR. The German Embassy in Vientiane as well as Luxembourg Development provided funding for the GeneXpert which will now be installed in the newly built LuxDev-funded Pakxan Hospital. At the moment, the machine is ready to leave the National TB Laboratory in Vientiane Capital where it was calibrated before the next leg of its journey to Pakxan.

GeneXpert is the most efficient way of diagnosing TB sputum samples. Since sputum smear microscopy has severe limitations when it comes to several different kinds of TB, WHO now recommends GeneXpert as the initial diagnostic test. Especially for presumed cases additionally suffering from HIV, and patients suspected of having Multi-Drug-Resistant TB, GeneXpert is the most reliable way of diagnosing their TB status. Yet, since the equipment is very expensive, there is only a limited number of GeneXperts available in Lao PDR. Bolikhamxay Province, where HPP Laos is currently implementing a TB active case finding project, did not have its own GeneXpert to date. When in doubt, laboratory staff had to send samples to Vientiane Capital, a distance of three to four hours by car and bus – and by that stage, sputum samples would have already travelled a long distance from the village level to Provincial level. If not transported appropriately, samples can become unviable. By equipping Pakxan Hospital with its own GeneXpert and training laboratory staff in how to use it, HPP Laos hopes to facilitate the TB care cascade in the Province and to contribute to more clients being cured from TB.

Village Health Workers at the centre of tuberculosis prevention in Bolikhamxay

Our Tuberculosis Active Case Finding project (TC TB) in Bolikhamxay Province works with villagers in areas of presumptive tuberculosis prevalence. A crucial element of the TC TB project is the cooperation of HPP Laos staff with local Village Health Workers (VHWs): around 100 VHWs are involved in the project. VHWs are volunteers who provide basic health services to and in their communities, and they are an integral part of the health care system in Laos where resources are scarce. At the beginning of the project, some VHWs in the target communities also received training, and now the HPP Laos team and the VHWs work side by side in the villages.

The TC TB team is ready to support another village to become TB free!

The TC TB team is meeting with representatives from District Health Centres, Village Health Workers as well as the Director of the Health Department in Pakkading District.

One of them, Mr Khamvone from Pakkading District, is 65 years old and formerly affected by tuberculosis himself. He received treatment from February to July 2018, and now he can use his expertise on a daily basis. VHWs are overseen by their local District Health Centres which are also closely involved in the project. Health Centre staff analyse sputum samples collected in the field, and potentially send them to further laboratory experts in Vientiane.

As always, HPP Laos also closely cooperates with local government authorities, which is key for the project’s sustainability. Representatives from the Department of Health regularly conduct supervision tours with our staff to monitor the progress of the project, and hold update meetings to discuss developments.

Hospital staff in Bolikhan District Hospital are checking sputum samples

Tuberculosis awareness campaign meeting at Namdeua village with local Health Centre staff.