Language in tuberculosis services.

We welcome the call by Zachariah et al. for a move towards more patient-centred terminology in tuberculosis (TB) care.1 We suggest, however, that the changes proposed do not go far enough. In paral lel with terminology used in the world of the human immuno defi ciency virus, we propose replacing the phrase ‘TB patient’ by ‘person with TB’. ‘TB patient’ puts emphasis on the disease, but it is imperative to remember that fi rst and foremost we are talking to and about people, generally with a whole host of problems, of which TB is only one—and we should note that the situation is even worse for those suffering from multidrug-resistant TB. If we do not acknowledge that people receiving care for TB also have to feed their families and themselves, look after their children and other dependents and have some quality of life, the TB care we provide will damage all of these essential facets of life. We should not be complacent. Although a high proportion of people with TB achieve a treatment outcome that we call ‘success’, this is at substantial cost—high debts, sale of long-term means of survival such as land, animals and equipment, and withdrawal of children from school to send them to work. We wonder whether people with TB would describe this as ‘success’.