Low completion rate for the 6-months course of isoniazid preventive therapy among people living with HIV, North Eastern Uganda, 2015-2017.

Introduction: isoniazid preventive therapy (IPT) is highly effective at preventing tuberculosis among Persons Living with HIV (PLHIV). However, IPT completion rates in Uganda have not been studied. We examined completion rates for the 6-month course of IPT and factors associated with non-completion among PLHIV in northeastern Uganda.

The Looming Threat of Dengue Fever: The Africa Context.

In Africa, compared to 2019, dengue infections have surged ninefold by December 2023, with over 270 000 cases and 753 deaths reported across 18 African Union (AU) Member States. This commentary synthesises the context of dengue outbreaks in Africa and provides recommendations for sustainable control. In 2023, 18 African Union Member States reported outbreaks of dengue, among which seven had ongoing armed conflicts.

Sudan virus disease super-spreading, Uganda, 2022.

Background: On 20 September 2022, Uganda declared its fifth Sudan virus disease (SVD) outbreak, culminating in 142 confirmed and 22 probable cases. The reproductive rate (R) of this outbreak was 1.25.

Continental concerted efforts to control the seventh outbreak of Ebola Virus disease in Uganda: The first 90 days of the response.

On 20th September 2022, Uganda declared the 7th outbreak of Ebola virus disease (EVD) caused by the Sudan Ebola strain following the confirmation of a case admitted at Mubende Regional Referral Hospital. Upon confirmation, the Government of Uganda immediately activated the national incident management system to initiate response activities. Additionally, a multi-country emergency stakeholder meeting was held in Kampala; convening Ministers of Health from neighbouring Member States to undertake cross-border preparedness and response actions.

Evaluating event-based surveillance capacity in Africa: Use of the Africa CDC scorecard, 2022-2023.

Introduction: Event-based surveillance (EBS) is a critical component of Early Warning, Alert and Response (EWAR) capacity needed for outbreak prevention and control. To better understand existing EBS and monitor the progress of capacity-building efforts over time, Africa CDC developed an EBS scorecard as part of a revision to the EBS Framework.

Methods: We distributed the scorecard to African Union (AU) Member States (MSs).

Uganda's experience in establishing an electronic compendium for public health emergencies.

Uganda has implemented several interventions that have contributed to prevention, early detection, and effective response to Public Health Emergencies (PHEs). However, there are gaps in collecting and documenting data on the overall response to these PHEs. We set out to establish a comprehensive electronic database of PHEs that occurred in Uganda since 2000.

Establishing a Public Health Emergency Operations Center in an Outbreak-Prone Country: Lessons Learned in Uganda, January 2014 to December 2021.

Uganda is highly vulnerable to public health emergencies (PHEs) due to its geographic location next to the Congo Basin epidemic hot spot, placement within multiple epidemic belts, high population growth rates, and refugee influx. In view of this, Uganda's Ministry of Health established the Public Health Emergency Operations Center (PHEOC) in September 2013, as a central coordination unit for all PHEs in the country. Uganda followed the World Health Organization's framework to establish the PHEOC, including establishing a steering committee, acquiring legal authority, developing emergency response plans, and developing a concept of operations.

Uganda's experience in Ebola virus disease outbreak preparedness, 2018-2019.

Background: Since the declaration of the 10th Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) outbreak in DRC on 1st Aug 2018, several neighboring countries have been developing and implementing preparedness efforts to prevent EVD cross-border transmission to enable timely detection, investigation, and response in the event of a confirmed EVD outbreak in the country. We describe Uganda's experience in EVD preparedness.

Results: On 4 August 2018, the Uganda Ministry of Health (MoH) activated the Public Health Emergency Operations Centre (PHEOC) and the National Task Force (NTF) for public health emergencies to plan, guide, and coordinate EVD preparedness in the country.

Conducting the Joint External Evaluation in Uganda: The Process and Lessons Learned.

Uganda is currently implementing the Global Health Security Agenda (GHSA), aiming at accelerating compliance to the International Health Regulations (IHR) (2005). To assess progress toward compliance, a Joint External Evaluation (JEE) was conducted by the World Health Organization (WHO). Based on this evaluation, we present the process and lessons learned.