57 3 Epidemiology and control of DM-TB Comorbidity interviews (Supplementary file 3) to ensure the quality of the interview responses. The interview guide will be reviewed to ensure it is coherent and the questions asked directly operationalize the study research question. Before interviewing the healthcare workers, deductive codes will be discussed with the research team to act as a guide during the interviews and the final codes will include those raised by the participants. The interviewee will be allowed to respond with limited interruptions. Recorders will be used so that the correct information is transcribed once the interview is completed. The anticipated duration of the interview is 30 to 45 minutes. Approach for Patient Data Collection The TB units at the different health facilities where TB patients are enrolled and reviewed maintain patients' clinical information which will be available to the study team. Noting that some TB units may not have the facility for testing and recording baseline glucose measurements for patients and during follow-up, point of care Accu-Check Active Glucometer (Roche®) (with test strips and lancets) will be placed at the different TB Units for the measurement and documentation of blood glucose at baseline and during the 2nd and 5th month follow up visits. Based on this, baseline data will be collected at enrollment, while follow-up data for the 2nd-month visits will commence in the third month and that for the 5th-month visits will commence in the sixth month (Figure 2). This is consistent with the guidelines for the recording of patient information when receiving treatment for tuberculosis in Eswatini (Supplementary file 4). The provision of Accu-Check Active Glucometer (Roche®) is to ensure patients receive a blood glucose measurement at each visit and the study does not become an additional burden to the health facility. Study participants will not be required to fast before a blood glucose test as such a strict routine may not be achievable in programmatic conditions. All study participants with abnormal random baseline or follow-up glucose measurements will be referred to a clinician for further evaluation and care. At the end of the study, the glucometers will be donated to the TB unit for continued use with support from the health facility's laboratory. Figure 2: Schedule for data collection at baseline and during follow-up
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