Table 4. Characteristics of private practitioners in relation to compliance with 3 selected core ISTC* in Visakhapatnam, AP.
| Standard 1 | Standard 2 | Standard 8 | Standard 1+2+8 | ||
| Characteristic | N (% ) | N (% ) | N (% ) | N (% ) | RR (95% CI) |
| Gender: | |||||
| Male (n = 154) | 106 (70) | 67(45) | 44 (32) | 23 (15) | 1.2 (0.5–3.1) |
| Female(n = 47) | 24 (57) | 17(41) | 16 (47) | 5 (12) | |
| Qualification: | |||||
| AYUSH (n = 27) | 22 (82) | 18 (69) | 9 (35) | 8 (30) | 2.4 (1.2–4.9) |
| Modern Medicine (n = 152) | 96 (63) | 63 (42) | 47 (35) | 19 (13) | |
| Years in Practice: | |||||
| Less than 10 (n = 32) | 22 (69) | 20 (65) | 13 (46) | 7 (22) | 1.9 (0.8–4.3) |
| 10 or more (n = 153) | 102 (67) | 56 (37) | 44 (33) | 17 (11) | |
| Type of Practice: | |||||
| Private and Government (n = 71) | 46 (65) | 35 (50) | 27 (44) | 14 (20) | 1.7 (0.8–3.7) |
| Private only (n = 100) | 68 (68) | 37 (38) | 29 (32) | 11 (11) | |
| TB patients seen last year: | |||||
| 21 and above (n = 53) | 40 (76) | 31 (56) | 21 (45) | 12 (22) | 2.1 (1.1–4.1) |
| 20 or less (n = 148) | 97 (66) | 56 (39) | 40 (30) | 16 (11) | |
| Sensitized to RNTCP guidelines: | |||||
| Sensitized (n = 87) | 67 (77) | 53 (61) | 36 (43) | 20 (23) | 3.2 (1.5–7.0) |
| Not sensitized (n = 113) | 69 (61) | 34 (31) | 25 (27) | 8 (7) |
*(International Standards of TB Care).
Core ISTC Standards: Standard 1 = Using 2–3 weeks cough for identification of Pulmonary TB suspects; Standard 2 = Using sputum smear microscopy examination; and Standard 6 = Treatment with the standard 6-month regimen; TB = Tuberculosis; AYUSH = Ayurveda, Unani, Siddha, Homeopathy; RNTCP = Revised National TB Control Programme; RR = Relative Risk has been calculated for standard 1+2+8; CI = Confidence Interval.