GAMECHANGER: Healing minds to cure TB is a documentary short that aims to reshape traditional ideas about TB and mental integration and provide a blueprint for how it can be scaled in low-resource settings to help end the global TB epidemic. 

Setting:                  Eastern Cape, South Africa

By:                          Annika Sweetland & Nacho Guevara

Genre:                    Documentary

Running time:        12 minutes

Languages:            English and isi-Xhosa (with English subtitles)

Project Overview: Set in the Eastern Cape of South Africa, this film traces the personal journey of Zibele Mahleni from his humble roots as a cattle herder to becoming one of the first master trainers in a low-cost, effective, scalable and sustainable mental health intervention that could transform access to mental healthcare as we know it.

Zibele Mahleni

Background

Depression could affect as many as half of all people with TB and is a risk factor for all negative outcomes including loss to follow up, drug-resistance, disability and death.

Treating depression can improve these outcomes and slow the spread of TB.

The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria - which dedicates $4 billion dollars per year to this cause - has prioritized mental health as a critical strategy for achieving TB eradication.

Despite the availability of funding, many countries do not know how to overcome the significant lack of mental health specialists.

This film demonstrates that TB and mental health integration is possible in a low-cost, effective, scalable, and sustainable way.

Xolisa Bobo

Characters

Zibele Mahleni: From his humble beginnings as a cattle herder, Zibele is one of the first South African certified counselors for Interpersonal Counselor (IPC). A born leader, Zibele recently became one of the first National IPC Master Trainers as part of a Scale-Up Initiative bringing IPC to underserved populations throughout the country.

Xolisa Bobo: A former TB patient, Bobo was one of Zibele’s first IPC clients who successfully overcame depression and is determined to bring IPC to others in his community. In January 2024, Bobo became one of South Africa’s first community IPC counselors, trained by Zibele himself.

Zibele Mahleni and his mom Beautiful.

Screenings

  • September 2023 - TB Innovation Summit 3.0, hosted by the U.N. StopTB Partnership, in New York, NY as a satellite event of the U.N. General Assembly

  • February 2024- Informal “Brown Bag” session with the World Health Organization and Global Fund, followed by a 10 minute live Q&A with protagonists Mr. Zibele Mahleni and Mr. Xolisa Bobo.

  • March 2024 - Bi-Annual Conference of the International Society for Interpersonal Counseling (ISIPT), along with a 5-minute live testimony from protagonist Mr. Zibele Mahleni.

Impact Campaign

We are currently seeking funding to launch a multilevel (global, national, local) impact campaign targeting policy makers, providers, students, and at-risk communities. Our impact goals are to make a case for global mental health investment, advocate for the use of evidence-based interventions delivered by trained lay providers, increase mental health awareness, reduce TB and mental health stigma, and provide a blueprint for how TB and mental health services can be integrated globally.