THE STORY OF MR. LUKMAN.

Mr. Teye Lukman is a fisherman residing at old Ningo with his family. He is about Seventy years old. His main occupation is fishing which he does with his colleagues, sailing daily around the coastal areas of Ghana to catch fish for sale. His business takes him to nearby communities but he does not recall coming into contact with a TB patient and he finds it difficult to point out the source of his infection. 

Mr. Lukman after he was diagnosed

According to Mr. Lukeman, for the past eight weeks he has been very sick. He has a cough, severe chest pains coupled with difficulty in breathing. He cannot eat and feels very tired after doing any tedious work.  Mr. Lukman looked very pale at the time the team met him. This situation has persisted for over two months, according to her sister Madam Mary Teye who takes care of him. However, because of financial difficulties he has not been able to visit the hospital for any medication. Rather he subjects himself to drinking alcohol, which according to him eases the cough intermittently.

The RONet team learnt about Mr. Lukman when they came into contact with Madam Mary Teye during a house-to-house visit conducted at Old Ningo. Madam Mary led the team to look for his brother in his house but he was not at home. Mary did not hesitate to lead the team to the seaside where his brother goes look for his daily bread. We met the brother leaning on a boat at the seaside. The team interacted with him and having narrated his predicament to the team, he was given a referral note to report at the Ningo Health Post for screening.

Mr. Lukman who looks very malnourished and need money for food, have been receiving a little support from the TB project until he is included on the enablers package provided by the Health facility.   On May 2^nd 2014 Mr. Lukman was at the health Centre for his laboratory report and he was diagnosed positive. He was counseled by the health personnel and immediately, supplied with drugs to begin treatment. His sister who was with him was counseled and selected to provide support and care to him. RONet team has since followed up to his house and all occupants educated and given referral notes for screening at the health facility. At the time of reporting, two members of his household have gone for diagnosis. Both results were negative.