Three Years, Three Lives, One Trusted Partnership: How Community Based TB Care Protected a Family in Kaduna
When the 16-year-old stepson of Mai Anguwa Aminu began coughing persistently in 2023, the family feared the worst but had little idea where to seek help. Like many residents of Layin Cinema Road in Rigasa, Igabi Local Government Area of Kaduna State, they first visited a nearby Patent Medicine Vendor (PMV). Fortunately, the PMV, Almabrook Medicine Store, was part of KNCV Nigeria’s PPM Hub-and-Spoke model and had been trained to recognize the signs and symptoms of tuberculosis.
Without delay, the PMV collected the young boy’s sputum sample, which was transported for testing by KNCV’s PPM Linkage Coordinator for Igabi LGA, Kabiru Muhammed. He coordinated the patient’s journey from sample referral and laboratory result retrieval to counselling, treatment linkage, and follow-up at the hub facility, Kauthar Clinic, ensuring that no opportunity for care was missed. The young boy completed treatment successfully and was declared cured. For many families, a TB diagnosis can be frightening. For Mai Anguwa Aminu’s household, however, it marked the beginning of a relationship built on trust.
A year later, Mai Anguwa Aminu’s 20-year-old brother-in-law, a vibrant local footballer, developed symptoms suggestive of tuberculosis. Having witnessed the successful treatment of the first patient, the family immediately returned to the same KNCV-supported network. Once again, Kabiru coordinated the referral, diagnosis, and treatment process.
Although the young man had to suspend his football activities temporarily, he completed treatment successfully and has since returned to an active and healthy life. By 2026, what had started as a single patient encounter had evolved into something far greater, a lasting partnership between one household and KNCV Nigeria.
During KNCV Nigeria World TB Day community outreach in March, health workers visited Mai Anguwa Aminu’s community as part of active TB case finding. Through the use of portable digital X-ray (PDX) with AI, Mallam Aminu’s 8-year-old daughter was identified as a presumptive. As she was unable to produce sputum at the time, further clinical assessment and X-ray report confirmed a TB. Through Kabiru Muhammed’s close coordination, she was promptly enrolled on treatment at Kauthar Clinic and is now recovering well, demonstrating the importance of thorough clinical assessment, timely diagnosis, and care. KNCV’s impact extended beyond diagnosis and treatment. Grateful for the support his family had received, Mai Anguwa Aminu became a passionate advocate for tuberculosis awareness in his community.
Today, he continues to encourage neighbours and friends to seek early testing whenever they experience symptoms of tuberculosis, believing that early diagnosis saves lives. Over three years, three members of a single household were successfully identified, diagnosed, linked to treatment, and supported through recovery under KNCV’s PPM Hub-and-Spoke model. Their story demonstrates that tuberculosis control is built not only on medicines, but also on trust, strong community partnerships, and dedicated health workers who guide patients through every step of the care journey. Through the commitment of KNCV staff, particularly PPM Linkage Coordinator Kabiru Muhammed, one family’s experience has become a powerful example of how community-centred care can protect households, inspire communities, and move Nigeria one step closer to ending tuberculosis.
