Médecins Sans Frontières/Doctors Without Borders (MSF) is organising the 3rd edition of the annual TB Day, a gathering of experts committed to advancing the fight against tuberculosis (TB). Our platform facilitates collaborations, networking opportunities, and sharing insights to address and advocate for challenges related to TB treatment and management.
In 2024, we are hosting TB Day in collaboration with Nepal’s National Tuberculosis Control Centre (NTCC) in Kathmandu, our agenda targets the medical and academic communities of South Asian countries, encouraging diversity of ideas and incorporating medical and operational experiences rooted in scientific evidence. We intend to emphasise the need for increased funding, TB management in complex settings- conflict zones to urban slums, and the latest vaccine trials to drive the conversation toward social determinants and preventive measures to create a comprehensive approach to effective TB control.
The event sessions will be a blend of panel discussions and presentations by eminent speakers from MSF, National TB Control Centre (NTCC, Nepal), Doctors For You, Mercy Corps, TB Action Group (TAG), Save the Children, Birat Nepal Medical Trust, Yenepoya Medical College Bangalore, BRAC, among others.
The conference will also be live-streamed for online audiences.
Agenda
08:00 – 09:00 | Registration and Tea
09:00 – 09:05 | Lamp lighting ceremony
09:05 – 09:30 | Opening Remarks and Welcome Note
Dr Farhat Mantoo, Executive Director, MSF South Asia
Chief Guest: Dr Roshan Pokhrel, Health Secretary, Nepal
Special Guest: Dr Sangeeta Kaushal Mishra, Director General, Department of Health Services, Nepal
09:30 – 10:15 | Keynote Address: Nutritional supplementation to prevent TB incidence in household-contacts of patients with pulmonary tuberculosis
Dr Anurag Bhargava, Professor-Medicine, Yenepoya Medical College, Mangalore, India
Dr Madhavi Bhargava, Associate Professor-Community Medicine, Yenepoya Medical College, Mangalore, India
10:15 – 11:35 | Funds – Trickle-down effect, right from the Donors to Beneficiaries
Moderator: Dr Farhat Mantoo, Executive Director, MSF South Asia
Mike Frick, Co-Director-Tuberculosis Program, Treatment Action Group, New York
Dr Shayla Islam, Associate Director, Communicable Disease, BRAC, Bangladesh
Dr Adeel Tahir, Senior Program Manager, Mercy Corps International, Pakistan
Dr Vaishali Venu, Director-Health and Nutrition Program, Doctors for You, India
Dr Kritika Dixit, Research Manager, Birat Nepal Medical Trust, Nepal
Dr Ashish Shrestha, Senior Technical Advisor, Save The Children, Nepal
11:35 – 12:15 | A Talk on the Tuberculosis Prevention
Mike Frick, Co-Director-Tuberculosis Program, Treatment Action Group, New York
Dr Syed Hissar, Scientist-E, ICMR- National Institute for Research in Tuberculosis, Chennai, India
12:15 – 13:30 | Lunch
13:30 – 14:50 | Ensuring TB Treatment and Care Across Diverse Settings
Moderator: Leena Menghaney, Regional Head, Access Campaign, MSF South Asia
Conflict Areas
Afghanistan | Dr Taiba Azizi, Medical doctor, MSF-Kandahar, DR-TB project, Afghanistan
Myanmar | Dr Ni Ni Tun, Lead -HIV innovative research for the Myanmar Oxford Clinical Research Unit, Medical Action Myanmar
Densely populated urban areas
Mumbai/India | Dr Samsuddin Khan, Medical Doctor-DR-TB, MSF-Mumbai, India
Dr Lorraine Rebello, Medical Activity Manager, MSF-Mumbai, India
Pakistan| Dr Saifullah Khan, Deputymedco- MSF Islamabad, Pakistan
Difficult-to-reach populations (geographical constraints)
Nepal | Dr Prajowl Shrestha, Director, National Tuberculosis Control Center, Nepal
14:50 – 15:20 | Fostering Collaboration – Exploring Opportunities and Challenges in Public-Private Partnerships for TB Elimination
Moderator: Dr Ravindra Kumar Dewan, Principal Consultant, National Institute of TB and Respiratory Disease, New Delhi
Dr Adeel Tahir, Senior Program Manager, Mercy Corps International, Pakistan
Rajesh Kumar Yadav, TB Coordinator, Save the Children, Nepal
15:20 – 15:30 | Vote of Thanks & Closing Remarks
Dr Prajowl Shrestha, Director, National Tuberculosis Control Center, Nepal
15:30 – 16:00 | High Tea
