Events

Tuberculosis (TB) is among the world’s top ten causes of death and India contributes approximately 21% of this global TB burden. India also has the highest number of cases of multidrug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB), which negatively impacts treatment and is becoming a growing concern for healthcare providers. In Kenya, TB is the fourth common cause of death.

CGC | Mumbai in collaboration with CGC | Nairobi invite you to a panel discussion where our distinguished experts will discuss the current status of TB and MDR-TB globally and in India and Kenya, explore why TB remains a leading health security threat, and suggest strategies for improving diagnostic capacity, guaranteeing high-quality treatment, and preventing transmission of this deadly disease. As TB is an airborne infection like the SARS CoV-2 virus, the program will address the co-existence and interaction of the two, including the effect of the pandemic on healthcare and efforts to eliminate TB, the implications of vaccines on both, and treatment outcomes.

About the Speakers:

Dr. Irene Akinyi Mugenya has over five years of experience in clinical medicine and research. She studied Medicine at the University of Nairobi in Kenya. Right after medical school, she worked with different hospitals in Kenya where she gained her passion for public health and research in infectious diseases. She transitioned into research, working at the Kenya Medical Research Institute (KEMRI) where she worked on 9 clinical trials on infectious diseases and sickle cell disease, with one clinical trial specifically on Tuberculosis (TB) vaccine in children. Through these clinical trials and clinical experience, she directly screened and managed TB cases in children and adults, educated the community on TB which helped her get firsthand experience on in the diagnosis and management of TB. In her experience, she summarizes the solution as a multipronged approach that combines vaccination of children, patient education, early diagnosis and compliance to treatment. Her passion for TB research and treatment is further fueled by the overall dire situation in Kenya, with Kenya still being among the top 22 countries with the highest rates of TB cases. She is currently working as a Clinic Manager and Trial Physician at KAVI-ICR Kangemi clinic.

Neil W. Schluger is the Barbara and William Rosenthal Professor and Chairman of the Department of Medicine at New York Medical College and Director of the Department of Medicine at Westchester Medical Center. Throughout his academic career, Dr. Schluger has focused on tuberculosis and global aspects of lung health, with a strong public health orientation.  His work in TB has centered on epidemiology, novel diagnostics and new treatments for latent and active tuberculosis.  He has been a principal investigator in the Tuberculosis Trials Consortium, an international collaboration sponsored by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) for 25 years and was the Chairman of the consortium from 2000-2016.  He is also co-editor and a co-author of The Tobacco Atlas, the definitive work describing the extent and consequences of the global epidemic of tobacco use, published by Vital Strategies and the American Cancer Society.  Dr. Schluger is a founder and director of the East Africa Training Initiative in Pulmonary Medicine.  He has also been a faculty member for the ATS MECOR (Methods in Epidemiologic, Clinical, and Operations Research) program in India. Dr. Schluger is the author of over 180 articles, chapters and books, and his work has been published in The New England Journal of Medicine, JAMA, The Lancet, Lancet Respiratory Medicine and the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, among other leading journals.  He is an Associate Editor of The American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Medicine and is a past-president of the American Lung Association of New York.

Prof (Dr.) Ravindra Kumar Dewan, Director of the National Institute of Tuberculosis and Respiratory Disease, is a senior Thoracic Surgeon in India. As TB Manager, he is taking all the initiatives to realize the dream of End TB. Being Head of a tertiary care centre, he is committed to provide high quality preventive, diagnostic, curative and rehabilitative services of global standards to patients of tuberculosis, respiratory diseases and thoracic surgery. He has numerous publications to his credit published in both National and International Journals and has received many awards in his illustrious career. He is a member of several professional bodies including European Society of Thoracic Surgeons, Indian Association of Cardiovascular Thoracic Surgeons, Asian Society for Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery, National College ofChest Physicians, Indian Association of Bronchology and Lung Cancer Society of India. He is the Vice President of the Indian Society of Thoracic Surgeons and Trust and is actively engaged in promotion of thoracic surgery expertise globally.