Social networks for health communication in rural Uganda: A mixed-method analysis of Dekabusa Trading Centre, Luwero County.

To reach the most vulnerable individuals in under-resourced countries, health communication interventions increasingly move towards the community level. However, little is known about how health information spreads through local social networks. This paper maps the health information network of a rural trading centre in Uganda.

The first mile: community experience of outbreak control during an Ebola outbreak in Luwero District, Uganda.

Background: A major challenge to outbreak control lies in early detection of viral haemorrhagic fevers (VHFs) in local community contexts during the critical initial stages of an epidemic, when risk of spreading is its highest ("the first mile"). In this paper we document how a major Ebola outbreak control effort in central Uganda in 2012 was experienced from the perspective of the community. We ask to what extent the community became a resource for early detection, and identify problems encountered with community health worker and social mobilization strategies.