Determinants of treatment completion among rural smear positive pulmonary tuberculosis patients: a cross-sectional survey conducted in south-western Uganda

BACKGROUND: Treatment completion among tuberculosis patients remains low across various regions of Uganda, despite implementation of directly observed treatment short course. This study evaluated the determinants of treatment completion in a rural health sub-district of south western Uganda. METHODS: In April 2012, health facility records were reviewed to identify tuberculosis patients who had been initiated on treatment between June 2008 and May 2011, in Rwampara Health Sub-District, south-western Uganda. Out of the 162 patients identified, 128 (79%) were traced and subsequently interviewed during a survey conducted in June 2012. Eleven (6.8%) of the 162 patients died, while 23 (14.2%) could not be traced. A review of records showed that 17 of those that could not be traced completed treatment while the other six did not have definitive records. RESULTS: Treatment completion among the 128 patients interviewed was 89.8%. Pre-treatment counselling (aOR = 24.3, 95% CI: 1.4–26.6, P = 0.03), counselling at the time of submission of sputum during follow up (aOR = 6.8, 95% CI: 1.4–33.7, P = 0.02), and refill of drugs on the exact appointment date (aOR = 13.4, 95% CI: 1.9–93.0, P = 0.01), were independently associated with treatment completion. CONCLUSIONS: The level of treatment completion was higher than the national average, with service- related determinants identified as being critical for ensuring treatment completion. These data provide further evidence for the need to provide ongoing counselling support to tuberculosis patients. Enhancing the opportunities for counselling of tuberculosis patients should therefore be rigorously promoted as an approach to increase treatment completion in rural settings. ELECTRONIC SUPPLEMENTARY MATERIAL: The online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s40249-017-0313-3) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.