Why B4H: TB?
TB: A PNG national emergency
Businesses for Health: TB exists because Papua New Guinea has some of the highest rates of TB disease in the world, increasing incidence of drug resistant TB, and inadequate healthcare services. Among infectious diseases, TB is the leading cause of premature death in Papua New Guinea1.
TB and the private sector
The impact on businesses and the private sector in PNG is an increasing concern, as the highest rates of transmission are observed in the economically productive age group of 15 to 45 years residing in urban areas. The World Health Organisation estimates that an employee with TB can lose an average of 3 to 4 months of work and income, resulting in potential losses of 20 to 30 percent in annual household income.
Enter Businesses for Health B4H
Building on the success of PNG Businesses Against HIV and AIDS (BAHA), the goal of B4H is to increase workers' access to TB education, detection. treatment and prevention services through workplace TB programs, through:
- Delivering cost-effective technical assistance to businesses
- Mobilising the private sector to actively engage in the national TB effort
- Establishing a sustainable business model for continuing to deliver services following seed funding from the Australian Government.