A National Changhua University Assistant Professor Li Dong-feng has been teaching for 27 years. Four years ago, Li met a student with surname You struggling with tuberculosis.  In order to help You through treatment, Li took him to dinners and provided the emotional and psychological support You sorely needed.  Only then was You, who had felt depressed and oppressed by his diagnosis, able to feel accepted and cared for.  Li is not a paid government social worker, but his heart-felt efforts to counsel students with tuberculosis are equal to, if not surpass, the quality of care provided by government-sponsored caregivers.  On May 11, Li, You, and Director Qiu Shi-Shan, and the tuberculosis case contacts at Shih Hsin University planned a news event to feature TB.  At the same time, the Taiwan Centers for Disease Control (Taiwan CDC) was organizing a tuberculosis awareness campaign, which included a press conference to reveal for the first time the experiences of students with tuberculosis in order to dispel myths and phobia surrounding the condition.

This year, Taiwan CDC successfully polled 1,077 parents of students from elementary to high school about its tuberculosis prevention policy, and found that 92% believed the condition is an important on-campus health issue, 64% of parents worried that their children may contract the disease in school, 61% of parents still worry that children who have been previously infected, but cured of the disease will still be ill-received in school, and only 26% believed that their child’s school would know how to properly handle the situation should they discover a case of TB among its students.  Therefore, TB advocacy and on-campus awareness are essential in promoting empathy, a factual understanding of the disease, and erase phobias and discrimination that surround it.

Taiwan CDC and the Ministry of Education mobilized a campaign this year to advocate and increase TB awareness on 19 college campuses.  The innovative campaign utilized large, 3D floor stickers with which the student body can take pictures, then upload them to the Taiwan CDC website or a myriad of social network sites to generate buzz and spread conducive, scientific knowledge of tuberculosis.  As part of the TB awareness campaign to demystify and spread factual information on the disease, organizers also invited teachers and students to share their own experiences with tuberculosis to help the community understand the prevalence of TB on campus and humanize the struggles of those living with the disease.

Professor Li of National Changhua Normal University said that his experience teaching in a high school and habit of receiving X-rays every two years have made him an early advocate of TB.  Li believes that all students with the disease should be given full support to help them complete the treatment, but unfortunately not every one feels the same way; discrimination as a result from misinformation about TB still exists. In fact, Li has encountered teachers who have not only asked him to reveal which students have TB, but have been reluctant to allow such students in their classrooms.  For the students’ protection, privacy, and to safeguard their right to education, Li refused the teachers’ requests, at the same time reminding them that students with TB are all on medication and that modern medicine makes the condition curable.

Director Qiu of National Changhua Normal University also mentioned that the school has implemented a system that accommodates and assists students with tuberculosis as soon as they are identified. The program helps students on treatment make contact with their teachers, invites public health nurses and doctors to campus to conduct health education sessions, and actively communicates with misinformed teachers that although students may contract TB from other students, the disease can be controlled and rendered noncommunicable via proper treatment. Thus, everyone—not just students and teachers—should take care not to exclude nor discriminate against those living with and being treated for tuberculosis.

Last year, Shih Hsin University experienced a tuberculosis scare when two TB case contacts attended a press conference.  Both were there to share their experiences of undergoing treatment for latent tuberculosis infections (LTBI). However, even just hearing the sound of a cough frightened others so much that many began taking prophylaxis or preventive medication.  Worried for how the two students would be perceived by their peers, their family warned them to keep their diagnoses a secret.  Hsu, one of the TB case contacts, revealed that when the TB awareness event was in the news, bus drivers would require students from Shih Hsin University to wear masks on board. In addition, on the first day of the incident, other students at his workplace even asked him to leave.  Hsu was fearful of all the public backlash he received until his school and health agencies came to his aid, advocating for him and arranging his treatment. Gradually, his anxiety abated into a sense of balance that motivated him to face his condition and consequent treatment. During the ongoing nine-month treatment program, students constantly encourage one another. The most popular greeting among them is “have you taken your medication?”. The students and concerned faculty hope that more positive experiences will urge everyone to create a friendlier environment for those living with tuberculosis.