Leveraging community treatment supporters to improve TB outcomes in urban PNG - Poster

LEVERAGING COMMUNITY TREATMENT SUPPORTERS (CTS) TO IMPROVE TB TREATMENT OUTCOMES: EVIDENCE FROM PAPUA NEW GUINEA'S URBAN TB RESPONSE

This poster was presented at the World Conference on Lung Health in Copenhagen, Denmark in November 2025.

Papua New Guinea (PNG) continues to face one of the highest tuberculosis (TB) burdens in the Western Pacific, with an estimated 44,000 cases in 2022. To strengthen the TB care cascade, World Vision introduced Community Treatment Supporters (CTS) – trained and incentivised volunteers, often former TB patients, who assist with case finding, contact tracing, referrals and directly observed treatment.

World Vision compared TB treatment outcomes in two urban provinces: the National Capital District (NCD), where a mature CTS programme has been in place for several years, and Morobe Province, where implementation began in 2024. The NCD programme achieved a treatment success rate of around 90%, compared with 77% in Morobe. The structured, community-led approach in NCD improved adherence, follow-up, and case management, while limited rollout and supervision in Morobe constrained results.

These findings demonstrate that engaging CTS is an effective, community-driven strategy for improving TB treatment outcomes. Expanding this approach to high-burden areas like Morobe – supported by strong supervision and sustainable incentives – will be key to achieving PNG’s national TB reduction targets.