Support MDRTB Patients Completely

The experience we had been through with MDRTB has thought us a lot of lesson. The patience, family bonding and support and disseminating guides and information to others who are aware of the disease but are not conscious about it. Those lesson have not only helped us but the community also around us.

When you have the disease, it is reported to your nearest health center, recorded also in the city health for follow-up matters and identification for each patient.

The entire medication program in the San Lazaro Hospital is entirely free. I remember, one of the nurses said that the budget for a single medication can cost about P1,000 a day per patient. And the entire medication plus the laboratory fees, can cost up to P3 million pesos per patient. The only reminder they insisted to us is to never missed a day of taking those meds because it means that the patient is taking for granted the budget that is allotted to him/her.

There are also other benefits for the MDRTB patient:

1. Free medication for the entire treatment program.
2. Free laboratories like x-rays and blood chemistry.
3. Allotted allowance per patient.

So there is really no need to worry about the entire medication costs. The only thing you must think about is the healthy food the patient should take with the entire medication for the support of the side effects it cause to the patient.

Mostly of the patients are in middle class, others are really poor who needs to work even being advise to take a complete rest during the program. Those are the patients who needs more support from the family yet are neglected.

The reality today about others opinion with the disease is that it's not deadly anymore unlike some decades ago. So with that, they reject to accept that it's still a serious disease that a patient with it should be taken good care also. It is really a complete misunderstanding that because it is level as an out-patient, it cannot be that serious. So they treat these patients as capable of doing normal jobs, normal lifestyle. I pity those patients but is there anything we can do about it?

The only thing we can do is convince others that these patients needs entirely our complete support; financially, emotionally, physically and spiritually. They need our prayers. We should support them with the best we can.

Have you know someone having like this before? In what way have you helped them? Have you supported these patients completely?