Montgomery County Department of Health and Human Services:

Tuberculosis (TB) Control Clinic

Redeat Taye Bekele

Student Intern TB Clinic| Fall 2016| Location: Dennis Avenue Health Center, 2000 Dennis Avenue, Silver Spring,
MD
20902
What is tuberculosis?
Who is most at risk for TB?
Coursework Relevancy
Description of your organization:
The department is the largest in County
government and are responsible for public
health and human services that help address
the needs of our communitys most vulnerable
children, adults and seniors.
They have more than 120 programs and
deliver services at more than 20 locations in
Montgomery County.
The TB control program is among the large
public health programs that the county offers.

Tuberculosis (TB) is an infection caused by

slow-growing bacteria called Mycobacterium
Tuberculosis. It grows best in areas of the
body that have lots of blood and oxygen.
That's why it is most often found in the lungs.
This is called pulmonary TB.
TB can also spread to other parts of the body,
which is called extra-pulmonary TB.

TB Control Program:
The program manages the needs of
individuals who are:
At high risk for TB disease or latent
infection
Having contacts to active TB cases
Suspected of having active TB
disease
Individuals whose cases are reported
to the program from private providers
and hospitals
The program only performs diagnostic
Public Health
Issue
Addressed
procedures,
such
as chest
x-rays,By
forTB
Control
clinic patients under
the orders of a
medical
provider
in
the
TB
Clinic.
Provide Tuberculosis screening, testing and
treatment
Design outreaching strategies
Perform Tuberculosis contact investigation
Promote awareness
Provide Directly observed treatment (DOT)
for TB patients

RESEARCH POSTER PRESENTATION DESIGN 2015

www.PosterPresentations.com

Tuberculosis is either latent or active.

Latent TB means that you have the TB
bacteria in your body, but your body's
defenses (immune system) are keeping it from
turning into active TB. This means that you
don't have any symptoms of TB right now and
can't spread the disease to others. If you have
latent TB, it can become active TB.
Active TB means that the TB bacteria are
growing and causing symptoms. If your lungs
are infected with active TB, it is easy to spread
the disease to others.
TB Treatments:
Several antibiotics are available
to treat TB.
Treatment is often a success, but
it is a long process. It usually takes
about 6 to 9 months to treat TB.
Some TB infections need to be
treated for up to 2 years.

Some Individuals are more likely than others

to get TB. This includes people who:
Have HIV or another illness that weakens
the immune system.
Have close contact with someone who has
active TB, such as living in the same house as
someone who is infected with TB.
Care for a patient who has active TB, such as
doctors or nurses.
Live or work in crowded places, such as
prisons, nursing homes, or homeless shelters,
where other people may have active TB.
Have poor access to health care, such as
homeless people and migrant farm workers.
Abuse drugs or alcohol.
Travel to or were born in places where
untreated TB is common, such as Latin
America, Africa, Asia, Eastern Europe, and
Russia.

Project
Participated:
Support team during current
contact investigation.
Performed epidemiologic contact
investigation at a local school in
Montgomery county.
Screened over 100 students at the
school location.

The work done at the TB control is a straight

forward public health program that aims to
promote prevention by providing free
screening and diagnostic test as well as
treatment.
Epidemiology is highly used according to
reporting cases and incidences.
Most of the work that I have seen at the clinic
was something I have learned in most of my
public health classes such as in Public Health
Biology, Epidemiology, and Health Behavior.

References:
Center for Desease Control and Prevention (CDC). (n.d.) TB control.
Reteieved from: http://www.cdc.gov/tb/topic/basics/default.htm
Montgomery County Department of Health and Human Services Public
Health Services - TB Testing and Treatment. (n.d.). Retrieved from:
https
://www.montgomerycountymd.gov/HHS-Program/PHS/PHSTBControl-p29
3.html#
more

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

Professor Lynn Cook:

I appreciate the referral to this internship.
Mark Hodge:
I am thankful for offering me the internship
Kimberley Townsend:
Nurse Administrator at the TB control clinic
I am thankful for the greatest experience at my
very first public health job