Symposium 26

Abstract:
Japan has become a low-tuberculosis(TB)-burden country, with 10,235 newly notified patients at an 8.2 per 100,000 population in 2022, reaching the lowest level since the national tuberculosis control programme started after World War II. However, Japan is experiencing stagnation in the reduction speed of the annual notification rates. The age progress of TB patients and the increase in foreign-born TB patients have been and will be contributing to hampering the achievement of the final goal of TB elimination in Japan.

The former factor is mainly attributable to the severe TB epidemic roughly until the 1960s in Japan. The latter factor additionally challenges us to provide appropriate patient-centred care, for there often exists a communication barrier, and foreign-born TB patients tend to need help with social and economic difficulties in staying in Japan.

The Japanese government has determined to implement a pre-entry TB screening (JPETS) in six Asian countries to reduce foreign-born TB patients in Japan. Raising awareness about TB among medical staff and the community must be one of the cornerstones to improve the access of foreign-born people to medical facilities and to lessen the stigma related to TB among people. Improving access to the medical interpretation service is undoubtedly the key to communicating smoothly with foreign-born so that foreign-born TB patients can confidently continue their anti-TB treatment. Cross-border TB patient care to ensure their anti-TB treatment has not been internationally established yet. The Bridge TB Care (BTBC) in Japan implemented cross-border TB patient care for foreign-born TB patients who left Japan during the anti-TB treatment as a research project that indicated favourable results in continuing the anti-TB treatment among the patients referred.

Persistent patient-centred care for all TB patients is a prerequisite to achieving “Zero-TB” even after reaching the low-incidence level.