The objectives of this study were to identify the role of community nurses in the prevention of tuberculosis (TB) and to identify problems experienced by them when fulfilling this role in the Tshwane Health District of Gauteng. A non-experimental, descriptive, quantitative research design method was used to collect data from community nurses. The sample included 59 registered nurses who voluntarily agreed to participate in the study. A questionnaire was used to collect data and quantitative data analysis methods were employed. Various opinions and ideas on the role of community nurses in the prevention of TB and the problems experienced were identified. Based on the results of this research, measures to protect community nurses from contracting TB whilst on duty should be a priority. Government should support TB programmes by providing money to non-governmental organisations and direct observed treatment short course (DOTS) supporters to make follow-up visits to patients possible, thus reducing the number of defaulters. Stringent measures should be taken at all border points to ensure that foreigners are screened for TB, multidrug-resistant TB and extensively drugresistant TB. This study was limited to community nurses in the Tshwane Health District of Gauteng who were registered with the South African Nursing Council (SANC) and therefore this study could not be generalised to registered nurses in the hospital setting or even to clinics in the rest of South Africa. Introduction BackgroundFor many years tuberculosis (TB) has been one of the killer diseases in South Africa. It is still a major health problem, despite the fact that it is both preventable and curable. The World Health Organization (WHO), cited in Smeltzer et al. (2010:567), estimated that about 1% of South Africans (roughly 490 000) contracted TB in 2008. According to Vlok (2006:515), TB is associated with poverty and poor living conditions, which make a person particularly susceptible to TB if he or she comes into contact with an infected person.The WHO found that TB is the second highest cause of death globally (WHO 2005:1), after the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS), as it kills nearly two million people every year. A few years ago it was thought that TB could be successfully treated and even perhaps prevented by advances in medical treatment such as chemotherapy. Unfortunately this has not been the case, and TB can still be fatal (Toth et al. 2004:28). Africa is one of the countries with the highest incidence of TB. It is estimated that 2.4 million new TB cases are diagnosed and 540 000 deaths are caused by TB every year (WHO 2005:1).Controlling TB effectively is not the responsibility of healthcare workers alone; it is also the responsibility of each individual to prevent the spread of TB. This view is supported by the results of a study conducted by Richter and Peu (2004:38) who found that caregivers can help increase awareness of the community of their right to access effective TB care. Careg...