TB rates in Inuit communities are unacceptable – Thestar.com
The spread of TB in most parts of Canada and other developed countries has been contained for decades. This is in sharp contrast to Inuit Nunangat — the Inuit homeland — where the rate of TB among Inuit in 2016 was more than 300 times higher than in the Canadian-born, non-Indigenous population, and is trending upwards.
March 23, 2018
Tuberculosis (TB) is the world’s leading cause of death by infectious disease, claiming over 4,500 lives each day. TB is considered a “social disease” because societal and economic factors like poverty, malnutrition, and substandard or overcrowded housing contribute to its transmission.
The spread of TB in most parts of Canada and other developed countries has been contained for decades. This is in sharp contrast to Inuit Nunangat — the Inuit homeland — where the rate of TB among Inuit in 2016 was more than 300 times higher than in the Canadian-born, non-Indigenous population, and is trending upwards.
It is unacceptable that Inuit continue to be threatened by TB.
Not only can Canada eliminate TB in Inuit communities, we have a moral imperative to do so.
