Intergrated Service Delivery for Lung Health Conditions

The Advancing Lung Health in Zambia project aims to improve access to integrated screening, diagnosis, and management of tuberculosis (TB) and other priority respiratory diseases at community and primary healthcare levels. The project recognizes that many lung diseases present with similar symptoms, such as persistent cough, shortness of breath, chest pain, and difficulty breathing. Because of this overlap, focusing on a single disease can result in missed or delayed diagnoses for patients with other serious respiratory conditions. Guided by the World Health Organization's Practical Approach to Lung Health (PAL), the project promotes integrated assessment of people presenting with respiratory symptoms. The main conditions of interest include TB, post-TB lung disease (PTLD), pneumonia, silicosis, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). This approach ensures that patients receive comprehensive evaluation and appropriate care regardless of the underlying cause of their symptoms. A key feature of the project is the use of AI-enabled digital chest X-ray technology to support early and accurate detection of lung abnormalities. The technology assists healthcare workers in identifying signs of TB and other respiratory diseases, improving clinical decision-making and timely referral for further diagnosis and treatment. The project also strengthens healthcare worker capacity, expands access to diagnostic services, enhances community awareness, and improves referral and follow-up systems. In addition, it seeks to generate evidence on the burden and patterns of non-TB respiratory diseases in Zambia while documenting good practices and lessons learned from integrated lung health screening. The evidence generated will help inform policy, strengthen primary healthcare services, and support the scale-up of integrated lung health approaches, ultimately improving respiratory health outcomes and access to quality care across Zambia.