Publications by authors named "Kawungezi Peter"

Ebola disease survivors often experience stigma in multiple forms, including felt (perceived) stigma, enacted (action-based) stigma, and institutional stigma. On September 20, 2022, Uganda declared a Sudan Virus Disease (species orthoebolavirus sudanense) outbreak after a patient with confirmed Sudan virus (SUDV) infection was identified in Mubende District. The outbreak led to 142 confirmed and 22 probable cases over the next two months.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: In 2016, Uganda introduced services for hypertension and diabetes in selected HIV clinics. We evaluated the costs associated with scaling up these services in HIV clinics in Mbarara and Ibanda districts, Uganda.

Methods: We estimated the annual costs of providing hypertension and diabetes services using an activity-based costing approach from the health system perspective in ten randomly selected HIV clinics in Mbarara and Ibanda districts.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF
Article Synopsis
  • In February 2022, over 100 child deaths in Namutumba District were reported due to a mysterious disease, later confirmed to be severe malaria, leading to an investigation into its causes and preventive measures.
  • A retrospective study in March 2022 focused on the most affected subcounty, identifying cases of severe malaria-related deaths and matching them with survivors to determine risk factors associated with mortality.
  • Findings revealed that a significant percentage of child fatalities were among those under 5 years old, with notable links to incomplete treatment and lack of access to blood transfusions as key contributors to the deaths.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF
Article Synopsis
  • The study evaluated antimicrobial resistance (AMR) trends in Uganda by analyzing bacterial isolates from clinical samples between 2018-2021 to improve public health responses.
  • A total of 537 isolates were analyzed, with Staphylococcus aureus and Salmonella being the predominant pathogens, showing significant resistance to various antibiotics, particularly sulfonamides and fluoroquinolones.
  • The results indicated fluctuating resistance levels, particularly in methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus and increasing resistance among gram-negative bacteria to antibiotics like tetracycline and ceftriaxone.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: Uganda has had seven Ebola disease outbreaks, between 2000 and 2022. On Sept 20, 2022, the Ministry of Health declared a Sudan virus disease outbreak in Mubende District, Central Uganda. We describe the epidemiological characteristics and transmission dynamics.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF
Article Synopsis
  • Uganda's Integrated Disease Surveillance and Response (IDSR) system aims for early outbreak detection, but the Sudan virus outbreak in 2022 highlighted gaps in community and health facility reporting.* -
  • A study evaluated surveillance capacities in public and private health facilities, revealing that 85% of surveyed private facilities failed to report to the national system, and many lacked trained staff.* -
  • Identified gaps included weak community surveillance, poor engagement of private facilities, low awareness of Viral Hemorrhagic Fever, and insufficient funding and training for effective reporting.*
View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: In 2022, an Ebola disease outbreak caused by Sudan virus (SUDV) occurred in Uganda, primarily affecting Mubende and Kassanda districts. We determined risk factors for SUDV infection among household members (HHM) of cases.

Methods: We conducted a case-control and retrospective cohort study in January 2023.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: In Uganda, village health workers (VHWs) manage childhood illness under the integrated community case management (iCCM) strategy. Care is provided for malaria, pneumonia, and diarrhoea in a community setting. Currently, there is limited evidence on the cost-effectiveness of iCCM in comparison to health facility-based management for childhood illnesses.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF
Article Synopsis
  • Early isolation of Ebola patients at Treatment Units is crucial to control outbreaks, and a study was conducted to assess the timing of ETU entry during the 2022 Sudan virus disease outbreak in Uganda.
  • Among 118 confirmed cases, delays in ETU entry were significant, with 43% experiencing long delays of six days or more, particularly those whose symptoms started later in the outbreak.
  • Factors such as awareness of symptoms and contact status helped improve early care-seeking, while fear of the ETUs and transportation issues were common reasons for delayed isolation.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF
Article Synopsis
  • Between March and June 2022, around 34,000 refugees arrived at the Nyakabande Transit Centre in Uganda, leading to a COVID-19 outbreak with over 330 cases reported by mid-June.
  • A study identified risk factors for infection, revealing that close contact with symptomatic individuals increased the odds of COVID-19, while wearing face masks significantly reduced risk.
  • Recommendations included enforcing mask use and improving shelter space, with successful initiatives from collaborative efforts to promote health and expand resources.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: Contact tracing (CT) is critical for ebolavirus outbreak response. Ideally, all new cases after the index case should be previously-known contacts (PKC) before their onset, and spend minimal time ill in the community. We assessed the impact of CT during the 2022 Sudan Virus Disease (SVD) outbreak in Uganda.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF
Article Synopsis
  • * It analyzed data from 171 children (from 2014 to 2018) regarding their age, gender, symptom presence, and rapid diagnostic test results for malaria.
  • * The findings emphasize significant health issues, such as high rates of fever and the need for improved pre-referral treatment and integrated community case management (iCCM) programs.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: Village Health Workers (VHWs) in Uganda provide treatment for the childhood illness of malaria, pneumonia, and diarrhoea through the integrated community case management (iCCM) strategy. Under the strategy children under five years receive treatment for these illnesses within 24 h of onset of illness. This study examined promptness in seeking treatment from VHWs by children under five years with malaria, pneumonia, and diarrhoea in rural southwestern Uganda.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: In integrated community case management (iCCM) care, community health workers (CHWs) provide home-based management of fever, diarrhea and fast breathing for children aged <5 y. The iCCM protocol recommends that children with danger signs for severe illness are referred by CHWs to health facilities within their catchment area. This study examines the management of danger signs by CHWs implementing iCCM in a rural context.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: The control of malaria, pneumonia, and diarrhoea is important for the reduction in morbidity and mortality among children under 5 years. Uganda has adopted the Integrated Community Case Management strategy using Community Health Workers (CHWs) to address this challenge. The extent and trend of these three conditions managed by the CHWs are not well documented.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Globally, billions of people still lack access to safe water, including basic drinking water services, particularly in sub-Saharan Africa. We analyzed water quality for improved water sources and associated factors in Kibuku district, Eastern Uganda. The mixed-methods study employed included; water quality analysis, a questionnaire survey, and key informant interviews conducted in the months of April-June 2020.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: HIV stigma is one of the major barriers to HIV care due to the fear of disclosure and social discrimination. HIV stigma among men in sub-Saharan countries, including Uganda, has been linked to the fear about how HIV status might affect their status in society. HIV among men in sub-Saharan settings has been associated with feelings of shame, reduced self-worth, and self-blame for their HIV positive status.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: Measles outbreaks are prevalent throughout sub-Saharan Africa despite the preventive measures like vaccination that target under five-year-old children and health systems strengthening efforts like prioritizing the supply chain for supplies. Measles immunization coverage for Kasese district and Bugoye HC III in 2018 was 72 and 69%, respectively. This coverage has been very low and always marked red in the Red categorization (below the national target/poor performing) on the national league table indicators.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Introduction: Despite growing enthusiasm for integrating treatment of non-communicable diseases (NCDs) into human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) care and treatment services in sub-Saharan Africa, there is little evidence on the potential health and financial consequences of such integration. We aim to study the cost-effectiveness of basic NCD-HIV integration in a Ugandan setting.

Methods: We developed an epidemiologic-cost model to analyze, from the provider perspective, the cost-effectiveness of integrating hypertension, diabetes mellitus (DM) and high cholesterol screening and treatment for people living with HIV (PLWH) receiving antiretroviral therapy (ART) in Uganda.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF
Article Synopsis
  • The study investigates undergraduate students' perspectives on enhancing the teaching of research methods and biostatistics, using feedback from 600 students across three Ugandan medical schools.
  • Through qualitative analysis, students highlighted the significance of these subjects for understanding research, but noted challenges like a stressful learning environment and lack of resources.
  • To improve learning, students suggested earlier exposure, more practical teaching methods, and increased mentorship, indicating that current teaching practices often lead to disengagement and poor understanding of research principles.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Introduction: Globally every year 529,000 maternal deaths occur, 99% of this in developing countries. Uganda has high maternal and neonatal morbidity and mortality ratios, typical of many countries in sub-Saharan Africa. Recent findings reveal maternal mortality ratio of 435:100,000 live births and neonatal mortality rate of 29 deaths per 1000 live births in Uganda; these still remain a challenge.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: Effective utilization of computers and their applications in medical education and research is of paramount importance to students. The objective of this study was to determine the association between owning a computer and use of computers for research data analysis and the other factors influencing health professions students' computer use for data analysis.

Methods: We conducted a cross sectional study among undergraduate health professions students at three public universities in Uganda using a self-administered questionnaire.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF