In a strategic move aimed at strengthening its TB control and awareness initiative in Mumbai, the Indian Pharmaceutical Association (IPA) will be working closely with the Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai (MCGM), the primary agency responsible for urban governance in greater Mumbai. This move is to spread its pharmacist PPP TB model throughout the city through active collaboration with all the district TB officials (DTOs) under the MCGM and with chemist association.

Under this partnership, IPA will be closely working with DTOs to highlight the pivotal role of pharmacist in generating community awareness on TB identification and referral of TB suspects, Directly Observed Treatment Short course (DOTS) provision, recording and reporting and rational use of anti TB drugs to prevent further spread of the infection. The training will be done as per the well-accepted training module developed by experts from Central TB Division (CTD) and IPA after thorough research and analysis so as to ensure that pharmacists in the country are well sensitised and trained about the modalities required to ensure best TB control.

Manjiri Gharat, vice-president and chairperson of Community Pharmacy Division, IPA said “Through these training programmes we hope that pharmacists will contribute in keeping a check on the growing incidence of TB cases in the city especially the MDR TB cases.” She stressed that this programme's main focus will be on exploring the role of community pharmacists by training them exclusively to deliver best TB care and control services for the patients.

In this joint training programme, pharmacists will be trained to refer suspected TB cases to the nearest sputum microscopy centres as well act as DOTS providers that will enable making free anti-TB medicines available through pharmacies to the TB patients. The module also gives detailed information on the global and Indian TB scenario so as to enable the pharmacists to understand basics of TB and drug resistant TB along with understanding the principles and strategy RNTCP and DOTS.

Though IPA had initiated its training programme for the pharmacists in Mumbai, way back in 2006 in a small manner, this is the first time since 2012 that IPA has expanded its focus on Mumbai. Gharat informed that considering the diverse population residing in the city and the incidence of rise in the MDR cases it is important to have a proper sensitation drive in the city.

Interestingly, IPA has trained over 750 plus pharmacists across the country using this model, while it has also been replicated by its partner NGOs to train others. Altogether, there are around 1500 pharmacists who are efficiently trained under the TB DOTS programme.
 
The ministry of health in association with IPA had released this training module for community pharmacists under the Revised National Tuberculosis Control Programme (RNTCP) in 2013.