La situación de la tuberculosis en Chile y los actuales desafíos: Visita de la OPS al programa de control de la tuberculosis de Chile

Abstract

In December 2012, the Tuberculosis Control and Elimination Program (Programa de Control y Eliminación de la Tuberculosis-PROCET) of Chile, received an external Monitoring and Evaluation Mission of the Pan American Health Organization-PAHO (WHO Regional Office). The members of the Mission, together with national officials of PROCET, visited six Health Centers and presented their findings and recommendations to ministerial authorities. Even though the strengths that have led Chile to become a country with a low prevalence of tuberculosis (TB) were highlighted, they also pointed out the challenges that the program is facing, mainly the loss of priority that has suffered in recent years, which has resulted in a lack of resources and the weakening of operational activities. This has caused a dramatic slowing in the decrease of the incidence of TB in the last years. To face these challenges is the task that the Mission has given us and that PROCET endorses, with the aim of achieving the elimi-nation of TB as a public health problem in Chile within the targets established by the Ministy of Health.