This is the first in a series of online articles to profile the work of our colleagues across the nation.

The New England TB Consortium is demonstrating innovative approaches in the face of reduced funding, staffing cuts, and dwindling TB expertise while managing more complex patients.

Our colleagues in New England are meeting these challenges through a long-term commitment to work together on a regional basis to share experiences and expertise with the intention of enhancing program capacity. Formed in 2005 to communicate, coordinate, and collaborate, the Consortium partners with the Northeastern Regional Training and Medical Consultation Center, the CDC’s Division of TB Elimination, the Massachusetts and Connecticut Advisory Committees for the Elimination of TB, and the Lemuel Shattuck TB Treatment Unit.

To establish and foster collaborative relationships, Consortium members hold monthly planning calls that provide a regular time to discuss joint activities and to formulate future plans. Topics range from training to discussing genotyping clusters shared across states to new projects such as looking for a regional solution to involuntary isolation of nonadherent patients, and to offer advice or assistance on managing difficult cases.

At a recent leadership summit, the Consortium created a 5-year plan that will soon be posted at the New England TB Consortium website. This plan incorporates new directions to encourage cohort reviews and enhance program evaluation.

Consortium partners also collaborate on educational activities. The Consortium initiated two regular educational series. “TB Talk”, a popular quarterly case presentation, allows nurses, case managers, and outreach workers to discuss complex cases and offer different approaches to challenging problems. The second web-based series is “Eliminating TB Case by Case” at which clinicians present cases for discussion around important medical and public health themes. Both of these educational activities are assisted in the beginnings of nursing and physician networks to share local expertise across the region.

In addition, the Consortium works together and with its partners to organize trainings that are open to participants from other consortium states, allowing learners flexibility in choosing training locations. Faculty development has given an opportunity to recruit new clinicians into the TB network and encourage their interest in TB.

For programs in the New England region, the New England TB Consortium website offers resources, educational materials, and publications. Explore their website to find out more about this innovative group and their work.