Integrating Latent TB Infection Services into Primary Care in Massachusetts

In early 2020, our Technical Assistance for Service Integration (TA4SI) project was in the middle of working with infectious disease providers across Massachusetts to integrate tuberculosis (TB) infection services as part of their agencies’ offered services, rather than referring clients to other facilities. Since approximately 80% of cases of TB disease in the U.S. occur in people who have had latent TB infection, providing convenient testing and treatment services for clients is essential to prevent TB disease.

As the pandemic began to hit the northeastern U.S., these same community providers had to turn their attention to the COVID-19 crisis. We reviewed the situation closely with our client, the Massachusetts Department of Public Health (MDPH) Bureau of Infectious Disease and Laboratory Sciences, and revised our approach. Despite the crisis, our team was determined to maintain its commitment to helping providers implement high-quality services for existing infectious diseases—particularly HIV, viral hepatitis, sexually transmitted infections, and TB. 

JSI’s TA4SI team adjusted quickly. Leveraging our relationships and collective expertise, JSI and DPH colleagues mapped the service delivery components required for patient TB diagnosis and care, including interventions for risk assessment, testing, evaluation, treatment, adherence support, and reporting and analysis. 

In late 2020, TA4SI released a series of 10 fact sheets based on the Components for Testing and Treatment of Individuals with Latent Tuberculosis Infection graphic (below), along with a resource inventory for use by clinical and non-clinical providers. These resources focus on each component in the cascade of care for latent TB infection and support activities such as process mapping and billing.