Tuberculosis (TB)

The Communicable Disease Control Team at the Auckland Regional Public Health Service (ARPHS) has a key role in tuberculosis (TB) control in the Auckland region. Doctors and nurses provide the following services:

  • Supervision of treatment of TB patients in the community. This is often carried out as ‘directly observed therapy’ (DOT), where a nurse or health worker directly observes the patient taking their medication. Such close treatment supervision ensures that patients take their treatment as prescribed, thus reducing the risk of treatment failure and/or development of drug resistance.
  • Follow-up and screening of TB contacts (people exposed to patients with infectious tuberculosis). This is primarily done by Mantoux skin testing, which may be followed by chest X-rays. TB contact screening enables detection of other infectious cases of TB disease and [non infectious] latent TB infection (LTBI).
  • Education and advice for TB patients, TB contacts, their family members and the wider community.
  • Treatment of LTBI with medication to help prevent future TB disease.
  • Training in Mantoux testing and BCG vaccination.
  • BCG vaccination of high risk neonates and others that meet the Ministry of Health eligibility criteria – refer to Immunisation Handbook 2006, page 46.

Further TB information on these pages: