Grant: Planning and Dissemination Grant - Institute Community Support

Faith leaders in the province of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa are concerned about Tuberculosis or "TB" in their communities. TB kills more people than any other contagious disease, including AIDS. People get TB from breathing in the germs of a sick person's cough. TB is curable, but it can be difficult for people living in poverty to reach clinics to get tested or treated. We will work with churches in 4 communities to further develop a faith-led strategy to help connect people with TB symptoms to clinics and provide a supportive setting for people with TB. Church leaders helped us develop a draft strategy with 3 components: 1. Church leaders talk about TB in weekly sermons to teach congregants about TB symptoms, diagnosis, and treatment 2. Churchgoers with TB symptoms would meet with a health worker who also attends the church to determine if they should go to the clinic for a TB test 3. A group of volunteer congregants are trained as "TB Champions" in order to help support congregants and their families who are affected by TB To prepare to test this strategy, we will undertake the following activities: · Meet to discuss the scientific considerations to test the strategy · Work with a local faith organization to identify and select 3 congregations in each community where the strategy would be implemented ·Write grant applications to help fund the implementation and testing of the strategy ·Visit each community to meet with community leaders, clinic staff, and other partners to determine the details of the strategy that are appropriate to the local context ·Run a workshop with the leaders of the selected congregations to determine how best to implement the strategy in each church ·Attend community meetings and faith activities to help build awareness and refine the strategy ·Provide opportunities for South African collaborators to strengthen their skills in order to lead the test of the strategy once funding is secured.