Study of the feasibility of involving male student volunteers in case holding in an urban tuberculosis programme [Notes from the Field]

This paper reports the feasibility of involving unpaid National Service Scheme (NSS) male student volunteers in a city-based tuberculosis (TB) programme in supplying drugs and retrieving non-compliant TB patients. Twenty-five students were selected after assessing their attitude and were trained on TB drug delivery, home visits and motivation of non-compliant patients. Twenty-three sputum positive patients identified in a medical camp were started on an 8-month short-course chemotherapy regimen. Students supplied the drugs on a weekly basis and defaulters were visited. The treatment completion rate was 83% and defaulter retrieval was 57%. All patients had sputum smear conversion by 2 months and one relapsed during the 24-month follow-up.