TB&ME

TB&ME uses an interactive blog designed to give MDR-TB patients a platform to speak out about the issues which affect their lives, about how treatment and services could be improved, and how it feels to have this disease. It also provides an opportunity for patients to tell the world, in their own words, that MDR-TB is a global problem and to share their experiences with others who might be in the same position.

Patients are taking part in the TB&ME project on a voluntary basis - having been identified by MSF field staff as people who might be interested in sharing their stories. Many of these patients do not have access to computers or the internet. In these cases, the patients record their posts, which are then translated/transcribed and posted by MSF. The patients' stories may be edited for comprehension in English, but apart from this, they are unedited. The only exception to this is where information in a patient's blog post may compromise the security of MSF patients and/or staff. In such cases, the testimony will be discussed with the patient to find a solution.

The TB&ME blog also includes information about MDR-TB.

Health.

In 2010, MSF treated close to 30,000 people for tuberculosis, of which 3,300 were children under the age of 15. MSF - often working alongside national health authorities - treats patients for TB in 29 countries in a wide variety of settings, ranging from urban slums to rural areas, prisons, or refugee camps.