Convicts of Colony No. 6 supported the decision of the World Health Organization

Back in 1993, the World Health Organization declared tuberculosis a “global emergency” and March 24th “World Tuberculosis Day”. This date was chosen to mark a historical event — it was on 24 March 1882 that the German microbiologist Robert Koch discovered the causative agent of tuberculosis (“Koch's bacillus”).
Officially, the tuberculosis epidemic in Ukraine was recognised in 1995. Since then, the rates of spread of the disease have only been gaining momentum. Over the last years, Ukraine has been among the countries with a fairly high level of tuberculosis incidence (81 cases per 100,000 population), and by this indicator, it occupies seventh place in the European region.
The number of patients and the dynamics of the spread of tuberculosis in the penitentiary system are significantly higher than in “free” society. Thus, the incidence rate in prisons is approximately 50 times higher than on the outside, and the mortality rate is 30 times higher (according to the “Stop Tuberculosis” project).
Since the Kirovohrad region is one of the three regions of Ukraine in which the highest incidence rates are recorded, conducting information and awareness-raising activities, precisely among the prison population, is quite relevant and necessary.
Therefore, the Kirovohrad Regional Branch of the “All-Ukrainian Network of PLWH” initiated an action dedicated to World Tuberculosis Day in the city colony No. 6. Volunteers of the self-help group “Nadiya+” for HIV-positive convicts joined the event. By participating in the campaign, they decided to support the World Health Organization's decision to mark Tuberculosis Day. It is understandable that it is difficult to tell prisoners held in medium-security institutions (who previously served sentences of imprisonment) something new about this disease. All the more so because almost half of them have already had tuberculosis. Therefore, before the event, a survey was conducted to determine the information needs of prisoners regarding tuberculosis. The most necessary and useful information turned out to be the legislative foundations regarding the treatment of the disease and social benefits provided for by the legal framework of Ukraine. The participants were interested in their rights and the real state of their implementation by the state. During the interactive communication, some aspects of tuberculosis treatment and the duties of patients regarding a responsible attitude to the state of their health were discussed.