In many rural communities, TB has for a long time been perceived as a disease that does not affect traditional healers. This is partly, because those who have contracted TB were perceived as bewitched, and thus traditional healers wouldn’t be affected because they are able to deal with witchcraft.
This is true for Mr. Lukondya, a Traditional healer in Nyakafulu village, Mbogwe district. Mr. Lukondya says that, since he has been “healing” various ailments he never thought that he would contract TB, after all he is a traditional healer who knows all treatments for various diseases of his clients, even the ones that have been bewitched.
Things changed when Mr. Lukondya met Mr. Zablon, one of the Community Health Workers deployed by USAID’s Afya Shirikishi project. Zablon was doing his routine work of Contact Investigation (CI) in one of the local pubs. It is here that he met with Mr. Lukondya, following the TB awareness session given by Zablon,he felt the need to have his phlegm taken and examined for TB.
“After a week the results were out and the CHW told me that I had TB disease and that I needed to start TB treatment immediately. Honestly, I had a hard time believing him but seeing myself demonstrating similar symptoms and signs such as the ones my friend at the local pub had, I had to try it. I asked the CHW to visit my family too for TB screening. A day after the CHW ensured I had started treatment, he came and screened my entire family of nine members. The results indicated that my two wives, my two sons, aged 12 and 17 years old respectively, together with my three- under- five children had TB. They were all put on six-month Treatment like me. To date all of us are free from TB after completing the treatment. All I can say is, no one is immune to TB, and anyone can contract TB. Since then I have become an ambassador, every client of mine who shows similar symptoms of TB is linked to Zabuloni –the CHW for screening and if found infected he is put on treatment right away” says Mr. Lukondya- the traditional healer.
Since February 2021, Afya Shirikishi has engaged traditional healers as one of the key players in case finding and combating the disease. 52 Traditional healers have been oriented in TB screening and collaborative approaches for effective referral, linkages and feedback for TB services. Traditional healers work in collaboration with Community Health Workers especially on sputum sample collection, transportation and feedback.
Following this collaboration, 22 TB cases in Geita region have been notified by traditional healers with Mr. Lukondya as the key champion.
Mr. Lukondya says that, “ I have learnt that TB knows no boundaries. Anyone can contract the disease, but more importantly, what I have learned is that, TB is curable when the infected patient starts treatment on time and adheres to treatment to the end. In addition, I have learnt that TB is not a disease contracted because of being bewitched. I tell this to myself every day, my family, fellow community members and clients who come to visit me for other services.”
