The Communication Initiative
Development action with informed and engaged societies
The Communication Initiative
After nearly 28 years, The Communication Initiative (The CI) Global is entering a new chapter. Following a period of transition, the global website has been transferred to the University of the Witwatersrand (Wits) in South Africa, where it will be administered by the Social and Behaviour Change Communication Division. Wits' commitment to social change and justice makes it a trusted steward for The CI's legacy and future.
 
Co-founder Victoria Martin is pleased to see this work continue under Wits' leadership. Victoria knows that co-founder Warren Feek (1953–2024) would have felt deep pride in The CI Global's Africa-led direction.
 
We honour the team and partners who sustained The CI for decades. Meanwhile, La Iniciativa de Comunicación (CILA) continues independently at cila.comminitcila.com and is linked with The CI Global site.
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Jaramillo, E. (2001). The impact of media-based health education on tuberculosis diagnosis in Cali, Colombia

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Jaramillo, E. (2001). The impact of media-based health education on tuberculosis diagnosis in Cali, Colombia. Health Policy and Planning, 16(1), 68-73.

Abstract

Tuberculosis (TB) is one of the most worrying infectious diseases facing less developed countries. Diagnosis and treatment of those who are transmitting Mycobacterium tuberculosis is considered a very effective control strategy. Within this strategy the priority is to achieve high cure rates before attempting to increase case finding. However, there is a dearth of research on how to increase case finding and diagnostic coverage in those settings where high cure rates are being achieved. This paper presents an evaluation of the impact on case finding of a mass media health education campaign for TB control in Cali, Colombia. The campaign aimed at increasing case finding and reducing levels of prejudice against people with TB. The impact assessment shows that the campaign produced an increase of 64% in the number of direct smears processed by the laboratories and an increase of 52% in the number of new cases of positive pulmonary TB, with respect to the previous period. Unfortunately, the effects of the campaign were short-lived. These findings have at least two important implications. First, passive case finding is likely to be an insufficient strategy to reach the operational targets of diagnostic coverage. Secondly, providing basic information about the earliest symptoms of TB and the procedures for diagnosis can increase diagnostic coverage, and thus strengthen the effect on infection risk of control programmes with high cure rates. Further research is required to identify other strategies that could, first, increase diagnostic coverage and, secondly, make the intervention effects sustainable.