Logline
The documentary follows the stories of the families whose lives were affected by tuberculosis. Apart from the disease itself, the patients also have to deal with the stigma and judgement of their surroundings which they overcome thanks to medical and psychological support.

Synopsis
The documentary film “Healing care: supporting families to tackle child TB” tells the stories of the families who have been helped or are still being helped by Médecins Sans Frontières/ Doctors Without Borders (MSF) project focusing on prevention and treatment of the disease.
Surayo’s family lives in a remote area on the border with Uzbekistan. Her children got infected with tuberculosis from their grandfather. Surayo has received basic medical training and can treat her children at home instead of travelling to a distant hospital for treatment.
Mahbuba has experienced rejection from the neighbourhood due to her illness. People laughed at her and did not want anyone to play with her children. They believed that the disease was infectious even after a long time.
Through the MSF staff we also meet patients of the paediatric TB hospital: Mahina and Mohamed who share their struggle during the onset and development of the illness.
Stigma and difficulties of following the treatment are challenges they overcome thanks to the support of medics and psychologists.

Background information
Tajikistan has one of the highest burdens of multidrug-resistant tuberculosis in the world and children are particularly vulnerable.
In recent years, treatment options have improved. In addition to the introduction of newer drugs, the Family-DOT programme has been launched, which allows patients to be treated at home with the supervision of a trained family member. This is particularly advantageous for patients who live in remote areas and for whom regular trips to the hospital would be a major obstacle. Still, the disease is challenging for patients to manage. In addition to the physical symptoms themselves, they must also contend with the stigma and sometimes hateful behaviour of their friends and neighbours. With the help of MSF doctors and psychologists, they manage to overcome their difficulties and return to normal life.