Prisoners' health condition remains in poor state

Dicky Christanto ,  The Jakarta Post ,  Denpasar   |  Wed, 03/26/2008 12:34 PM  |  Bali

Justice and Human Rights Minister Andi Mattalata and officials from the Health Ministry visited Kerobokan prison in Bali on Monday to commemorate the World Day of Tuberculosis.

The prison was chosen as the prisoners there are prone to TB infection. As many as 121 prisoners were diagnosed with TB last year.

Besides the officials, comedian Tukul Arwana was also invited along. Tukul, famous for his television comedy show Empat Mata (eye to eye), was invited on his capacity as TB campaign ambassador.

As many as 800 prisoners throughout the country are diagnosed with TB each year. In Kerobokan, 121 prisoners were infected with TB last year, a significant increase from 33 prisoners with TB in 2006.

"That is the reason we are commemorating the 126th World Day of TB here, to remind the prison management to be aware of this disease," Mattalata told reporters after officially opening the prison clinic.

Kerobokan prison now has its own health clinic comprising two general medication rooms and one dental medication room. Three medical doctors are available on daily basis, serving 857 inmates. Two surgery rooms will be built attached to the clinic in the near future.

"It is part of our responsibility to maintain the health of our prisoners," warden Ilham Jaya told The Jakarta Post.

TB is caused by bacillus tuberculosis, which attacks the lungs and disrupts its functions. One of the symptoms of the disease is a persistent cough that lasts more than three weeks despite medication. A significant drop in body weight is usually follows the cough.

TB is curable but patients need to take routine medications and be separated from others in a place that has clean air. The medication processes usually takes about six to eight months. It cures around 87 percent of total patients.

The WHO recorded that approximately 1.7 million people died of TB in 2006, with Indonesia ranking third in the world in terms of TB-related deaths.

The Health Ministry's director general of communicable diseases, I Nyoman Kandun, said TB patients often failed to complete their course of medication as they often assumed they have been cured after three or four weeks of medication.

"It is true that by the third or fourth week of medication the patients have usually displayed a significant improvement, but it doesn't mean that they have been completely cured. A TB patient must wait until the sixth month to be completely free from the TB germ," he said.

He said one of the benefits of treating TB in prison was that TB patients were well monitored by prison doctors, so there is a better chance they will complete the cycle of medication.

He acknowledged a lack of funds still hampered the government's TB eradication efforts. That is why international sponsors, such as the WHO and USAID, are still needed. The government has allocated around Rp 266 billion (US$29.50 million) this year to tackle TB.

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