The world-wide struggle against tuberculosis, which is a universal social catastrophe, is disturbing the world. According to the analysis of the World Health Organization (WHO), around 1 million 700,000 people die each year from tuberculosis in the world, and the risk of tuberculosis is 100 times higher in prisons.
The struggle against this disease has always been at the centre of attention in our country and strategies have been prepared on the WHO recommendations, a special law has been adopted, and relevant programs and projects are being implemented jointly with international organizations, including the effective fight against tuberculosis in penitentiary institutions.
Under the decrees and orders issued by the President of the country Mr. Ilham Aliyev, measures are being taken to improve penitentiary activity, protect the rights of prisoners and defendants, improve medical and pharmaceutical care, and penitentiaries are equipped with modern medical equipment.
The International Committee of the Red Cross has been cooperating effectively in providing highly-qualified medical care for prisoners for many years, and has achieved positive results in the struggle against tuberculosis. The new express test allowing to define accurate diagnosis of tuberculosis in a short time was applied for the first time in Azerbaijan. At the same time, a specialized treatment facility operates to provide effective treatment of prisoners with tuberculosis and to improve their detention conditions.
All these have led to a decline in the number of cases of tuberculosis and infections year by year in penitentiary institutions. Tuberculosis mortality in penitentiary institutions dropped to 126 times in comparison with 1995, when purposeful activity with the ICRC was started. Compared with the last five years, the number of tuberculosis cases in 2018 was 3 times less, and the death rate from tuberculosis was 3.3 times less.
In our country, the targets on successful treatment of tuberculosis recommended by WHO got over the indicators, reaching results of 92 per cent of drug-resistant tuberculosis patients, and 78 per cent of TB patients with severe treatment-in-tuberculosis and this is one of the highest indicators in the world.
Azerbaijan's achievements in this field were evaluated by WHO, Global Fund, ICRC, International Corrections and Prisons Association (ICPA) with consultative status in the UN Economic and Social Council, “Partnership on stopping Tuberculosis” and other international organizations and shown as an
exemplary experience for the countries of the region, and was awarded with the annual Health Award of the ICPA.
At the same time, positive experience in the struggle against tuberculosis in penitentiary institutions of our country is valued as an example by the WHO, and other countries in the region have been encouraged to benefit from this experience. For this purpose, the Training Center, which operates under the specialized treatment facility since 2012, organizes regular international trainings and acquaintances for foreign delegations.
In 2014, the WHO European Regional Bureau held 7 international trainings for Ministries of Justice, Health and Internal Affairs, penitentiary medical services, delegations representing non-governmental and international organizations of the Western Europe, Asia, Africa, Central America and CIS countries in 2015-2018 in the Training Centre with an international status of “Cooperation Centre with WHO for the Control and Prevention of Tuberculosis in Prisons”, and 10 familiarization visits were organized by line of international organizations like Council of Europe, WHO and ICRC to study Azerbaijan's experience. In general, 230 delegates from 20 countries have visited Baku recently and have benefited from our positive experience and participated in various trainings. In some countries, our practice has already begun to be applied.
It should be noted that, WHO’s General Director Dr. Tedros Adhanom Gebreyesus, who visited Azerbaijan last year, familiarized himself with the activities and modern conditions of the International Training Centre, as well as with the organization of distant training via videoconference, and emphasized the strong political will of our state in achieving positive results in struggle against tuberculosis, the best practices of Azerbaijan in this field and the importance of large distribution of our positive experience in the world. The international status of the Training Centre has been extended for the next four years, taking into account the effectiveness of Azerbaijan's experience in the struggle against tuberculosis in other states.
Delegation consisting of 30 persons working in the field of medicine, penitentiary service and TB control from 7 countries (China, Iraq, Bangladesh, Philippines, Ukraine, Belarus and Turkmenistan) is visiting Azerbaijan from June 16 to June 22 of the current year to study Azerbaijan's experience in this field.
During the visit, the International Training Centre holds an international training course in the English and Russian languages on the theme of "Improving TB control measures in prisons of many countries with high rates of medicine-resistant tuberculosis during the administration of new TB drugs and treatment regimens".
According to the course program prepared in accordance with modern challenges jointly with WHO, ICRC, “Unlimited Doctors”, “Partnership on stopping Tuberculosis” and other specialized international organizations, the most recognized international experts of the Europe, as well as the leading experts of the Ministry of Justice's General Medical Department and Specialized treatment facility were also involved in the training course.
During the course, the audience will be acquainted with the works done on tuberculosis control in penitentiary institutions, and they will be practically demonstrated a number of treatment measures on a centralized model by complying with the rules of diagnosis of tuberculosis among prisoners, laboratory diagnostics with application of innovative technologies, infection control and detention regime.
At the same time, the audience and the international experts invited as listeners will be presented Azerbaijan’s uncial experience, as appointment of treatment in accordance with medicine-sensitivity indicators, large application of innovative laboratory diagnostic methods in accordance with international approaches and standards, compliance with infection control measures, provided that prisoners detention regime will be considered, follow of the released patients till the end of treatment and social support to them.
During the visit it is planned to acquaint the delegation with the historical and cultural monuments of Baku.
