Patients’ Perceptions on the Factors Contributing to Non-conversion after Two Months of Tuberculosis Treatment at Selected Primary Healthcare Facilities in the Ekurhuleni Health District, South Africa

Tuberculosis patients’ non-conversion is one of the factors impeding the ‘End TB’ strategies in South Africa. Several reasons have been recognised as contributing to patients with TB non-conversion, including TB illiteracy, denial of TB infection, reluctance to honour follow-up visits, and an unwillingness to take prescribed treatment for six months.

In light of this, this study aimed at exploring and describing factors contributing to patients with pulmonary TB non-conversion at two and three months of treatment at selected primary healthcare facilities in the Ekurhuleni Health District, Gauteng province.

A qualitative, explorative and descriptive research design was adopted with eight purposively sampled patients receiving TB care from five selected primary healthcare facilities. Semi-structured interviews were utilised to collect data from eight purposively sampled participants, who were interviewed on what they perceived to be factors contributing to patients with TB non-conversion at two and three months of treatment.

The study found that patients with TB attending the selected primary healthcare facilities experience psychosocial problems, such as shortage of food and lack of family support, as well as insufficient patient healthcare literacy.

The study recommends that enhanced patient education be given from the time a patient starts TB treatment. The involvement of multi-disciplinary teams and other stakeholders is important in the management of patients with TB. Furthermore, the outreach team must provide health education to patients with TB family members, so that they can support the patients with TB to comply with treatment. Family support must be emphasised because it encourages patients with TB to comply with the course of treatment.