On March 24, the eve before World TB Day, the National Taiwan University hosted a press conference coinciding with their campus campaign, “Hold out against TB, say ‘No’ to infection”. NTU student Lin Guanyu, who went through a slew of Tuberculosis (TB), spoke at the conference, emphasizing that the disease should not cause panic because advanced medicine allows those living with the disease to live a normal life. The partnership between NTU, Shih Hsin University, and student-formed music group, “Tuberculosis Band” uses music and art to encourage other students to become advocates of epidemic prevention in the fight against TB.

Taiwan CDC TB statistics reveal that in 2011, 500 emerging cases of TB were from students-50% of whom were enrolled in institutions of higher-education, including postgraduate and doctoral studies. For the past two years, an average of six TB clusters have been reported on campus every year, and the number of faculty and staff living with TB averages from 50 to 70.

Lin contracted TB during his second year in college through a botched medical treatment and was first diagnosed after he started coughing up blood. He was immediately put in short-term isolation and the infection was managed in the form of Directly Observed Treatment, Short-course (DOTS), until he was deemed non-infectious and was allowed to return to school to continue his studies. Lin said that after he became gravely ill, his family had no choice but to take care of him, and once his teachers and classmates learned about his diagnosis, they ostracized him. However, Lin received excellent care and constant encouragement elsewhere in support of his fight against TB, and it is because of cases like Lin’s that Shih Hsin University formed a “Tuberculosis Band” to combine music with the university’s past experiences with the disease to correct popular misconceptions and educate the student body on this issues through music.

Taiwan CDC works in conjunction with the Ministry of Education will visit campuses to educate and raise awareness of TB through interactive 3D floor art and a corresponding internet campaign that will run for two weeks from March 28 to April 13, 2012. Campus organizations will help install large, interactive 3D depictions that will feature Superman, a wooden kung-fu post, heavy barbells, open mouths, and other illustrations. Students are encouraged to take photos with the installments, upload them to Facebook and other social networking sites to attract more student participation, promoting TB prevention habits and spreading understanding of the disease. As of now, 19 colleges and universities are participating in the event, including North district: Shih Hsin University, Fu Jen Catholic University, Ocean University, National Central University, Tsinghua University, the new University of Science and Technology, Union University; Central district: Feng Chia University, Jinan University, Changhua Normal University; Southern district: National Yunlin University of Science and Technology, National Chiayi University, National Chung Cheng University, National Cheng Kung University, Sun Yat-sen University, National Pingtung University of Science and Technology; Eastern district: Ilan University, National Dong Hwa University, National Taitung Junior College.

Taiwan CDC also announced the expansion of their latent TB treatment plan in April for those who test positive for the disease and individuals who are living with a live infection and are in constant contact with a case in school or other densely populated institutions, or were born after January 1, 1986. Treatment of latent TB requires a visit to a physician to assess the need for treatment before the government would allocate funds to cover the cost of the treatment, estimated at $70 million. However, the officials have estimated that around 2, 450 patients with latent TB would benefit from the program.