The Healthcare project was started in 2015 with the goal of reducing prevalent diseases (e.g. Malaria, HIV, TB, diarrhea, diabetes, STD’s) and minimize the resulting damage. In 2019 we changed the project to Health Choices, focussing more on creating knowlegde so that people can make better choices for themselves.

AIM
We want to enable the community to make healthy choices. People in Uganda have health challenges because of their lifestyles. Like poor nutrition, bad hygiene, poverty and lack of knowledge on early symptoms of deseases. With knowledge we want to change the choices people make in their daily life. We know when they make healthy choices a lot of diseases like diarrhea, malaria, HIV/Aids, kwashiorkor, diabetes and high blood pressure can be prevented. The most important is to prevent disease from happening by providing free educational workshops and counseling. We spread up to date honest knowledge throughout the slums of Kampala and in villages.

FOR WHO?

• Vulnerable community members
• Minority and marginalised groups (such as commercial sex workers)
• Sick children and those at risk of becoming sick
• Teenagers
• Pregnant women and their unborn babies

WHY?
Access to good health care is very difficult and not self-evident in Uganda. The Central Intelligence Agency*   writes that there is only one doctor and/or nurse available per 8300 citizens. Also, 2.1% of Ugandan people reach 65 or older and the average life expectancy is
54 years. The best-known causes of mortality according the Ugandan Health Department** are:
1.        Malaria (14%)
2.        HIV/AIDS (10%)
3.        Pneumonia (8%)
4.        Anaemia (8%)
5.        Tuberculosis (6%)
HIV is becoming less of a taboo, but still everyday there are new HIV infections. It is distressing that many of these conditions are fatal in Uganda when in the western world they  barely lead to death. It becomes worse when we realize that the correct knowledge and
materials could prevent these conditions and these deaths.

HOW?
Identification of vulnerable community members and take action in improving their lives. Local leaders, teachers and social workers are consulted to mobilize their communities that need information. So that Nnina Olugero team can organize workshops with topics on
nutrition, hygiene and other common preventable diseases.

Establishing health education at schools and communities
The community, through sessions at schools, as well as elsewhere in the area, receive information on first aid, symptoms and the occurrence of certain diseases, such as STDs, but also hygiene, healthy food and healthy lifestyle play a role in the prevention of certain
diseases. We also want to emphasize what can be the consequences of traditional forms of healthcare or untrained doctors and how to recognize them. The information we provide includes:

• Good sanitary facilities and general hygiene
• Prevention of common diseases such as: Malaria, HIV/AIDS, STD’s, diabetes, cancer, sickle cells, cholera, typhoid, hypertension, ebola/Marburg virus, hepatitis B, STDs
• The dangers of some traditional uses and myths
• First aid training
• Prevention of HIV / AIDS (together with the Condomwise project)
• Mental health problems: stress, depression, anxiety, autism, addiction
• Puberty – what are the biological and behavioural changes

Promoting minority rights on qualitatively acceptable healthcare
This project will be a platform for increasing knowledge about making health choices for marginalized groups who are often battled by the police and excluded from common services. We acknowledge and argued, the right of these groups to healthcare and the right to support
such professions and to choose another civilian, occupational profession. All members of the community to access health care under the health project will be identified with the help of the local leaders who will identify members in the area, giving priority to those who are really in need.

 

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