COVID-19 Health Journalists Network in Uganda (HEJNU) Training in Gulu City.
Gulu Media Health Café on COVID-19 Held at Palema Crown Hotel in Gulu City on 14th July 2023.
The Health Café:
On Friday, 14th July 2023, the Health Journalists Network in Uganda (HEJNU) held a one-day health media café at Palema Crown Hotel in Gulu City.
The engagement started at 8:00 a.m. and went through until 3:00 p.m.
The café was attended by 20 journalists from different media houses within Gulu City.
It discussed and highlighted the effects of COVID-19, the current situation, COVID-19 vaccination, experiences from a survivor, and responses from the different stakeholders in mitigating and preventing its spread.
The café was attended by Civil Society Organizations (CSO), health experts, and a survivor of COVID-19.
The Panelists:
➢ Clovis Okello, a Biostatistician in Gulu District.
➢ Ms. Rebecca Abalo, a Social Worker at Terra Renaissance.
➢ Dr. Juliet Aunu Okeny, a Data Clerk at Health Centre III in Nwoya district.
➢ Awilo Florence, a Survivor of COVID-19 in Gulu City.
The session was moderated by John Ken Okot from the Northern Uganda Media Club (NUMEC).
The Journalists:
| NO | Names | Media House |
| 1 | Emmy Daniel Ojara | Speak Fm |
| 2 | John Ken Okot | NUMEC |
| 3 | Ivan Toolit | Mega Fm |
| 4 | Christopher Nyeko | UG-Reports |
| 5 | Jackson Kitara Daniel | Radio Rupiny |
| 6 | Patrick Uma | Chimp Reports |
| 7 | Wilfred Okot | The Ankole Times |
| 8 | Agnes Aromorach | Peace Journalists Foundation |
| 9 | Job Ronny Okot | NBS TV |
| 10 | Rose Mary Anena | Radio Pacis |
| 11 | Joyce Adokorach | Speak Fm |
| 12 | Teddy Doktho | Daily Monitor |
| 13 | Christopher Oola | Mega Fm |
| 14 | Kidega Joel Okot | Speak Fm |
| 15 | Okot Lil Romeo | TND News |
| 16 | Tracy Aciro | Mega Fm |
| 17 | Stephen Okello | West Nile TV/UBC |
| 18 | Caroline Ayugi | Uganda Radio Network (URN) |
| 19 | David Okema | Daily Express |
| 20 | Michael | Favor Fm |
John Ken Okot highlighted the reasons for the engagement and what was required from the participants and the panelists.
Key elements of the training were to understand the COVID-19 situation in the country and reflect on what has been done and what should be done.
Share experience and draw learning points from a survivor of COVID-19, understand the perceptions towards COVID-19 vaccinations in rural settings, know the current state of the COVID-19 situation in the Gulu district and also the roles of NGOs/CSOs in the fight against the disease and what is still being done.
Presentations by Ms. Abalo Rebecca:
The first presentation was made by Ms Rebecca Abalo, a social worker from Terra Renaissance in Gulu on the roles of NGOs in the COVID-19 fight and what is still being done.
She said that the NGOs and CSOs made a lot of strides in combating and preventing the spread of COVID-19 among the populace.
Specifically, on Terra Renaissance, Ms. Abalo pointed out that;
➢ Supported the COVID-19 Taskforce in managing COVID-19 cases and establishing an isolation unit.
➢ They offered food support to COVID-19 patients in isolation centres.
➢ Created awareness of the prevention of COVID-19 through flyers and posters.
➢ They also supported the Acholi sub-region COVID-19 task force with transport facilitation for outreaches.
➢ Produced and freely distributed hand washing equipment and facemark, and also emphasised their proper use to mitigate the spread of the virus.
➢ Built capacities and trained people on producing hand washing equipment and reusable facemarks.
➢ Distributed thousands of hand washing equipment and facemasks to public places including churches, hospitals, markets, and schools.
➢ Trained Village Health teams (VHTs) on proper management of hand washing to ensure control and prevention of COVID-19.
➢ Participated in meetings within the Acholi aimed at combating the spread of COVID-19.
Abalo disclosed that as Terra Renaissance they are still;
➢ Emphasizing that members of the public take cautions against COVID-19 arguing that the virus is still existing.
➢ Continued calls for vigilance.
➢ Informing the public that the COVID-19 risks are still not completely avoided.
➢ Chance of COVID-19 infection is still recognizable and everyone should have to take responsibility to prevent it.
➢ Continued the production and free distribution of face masks and handwashing equipment.
➢ Reminding the public to reflect on the COVID-19 situation and should never relax in taking extra precautions.
This was followed by interactions and question sessions from the journalists to Abalo;
➢ Joyce Adokorach of Speak Fm asked whether the civil society registered success in combating the spread of COVID-19.
➢ Christopher Nyeko of UG-Reports asked whether the CSOs faced challenges in trying to mitigate the spread of the disease.
➢ Among others, the initiatives the CSOs have in place to contain further outbreaks of COVID-19.
Abalo said that they had limited resources, and facilitation so they could not reach all areas within their scopes of operation.
The presentation was made by Juliet Aunu Okeny, the Data Clerk and Health Worker at Alero Health Centre III in Nwoya district.
She focused on the perceptions of COVID-19 vaccinations in rural settings.
She started by making an overview of COVID-19, what it is, its signs and symptoms, its effects on the community, the health risk groups to the infections, prevention measures spread, managing COVID-19 symptoms, and the myths around COVID-19.
Overall COVID-19 Situation in Nwoya District as Presented by Juliet Aunu Okeny;
➢ COVID-19 is an infectious disease caused by SAR-CoV_2 Virus.
➢ It is also defined as an illness caused by a novel coronavirus called a severe acute respiratory syndrome.
➢ It spread from human to human when an infected person sneezes or coughs and the person`s droplets come into contact with others.
➢ Can spread from touching a contaminated surface.
The signs and symptoms include;
➢ Fever
➢ Cough
➢ Sore throat
➢ Running nose
➢ Difficulty breathing
➢ General body weakness/fatigue
Prevention measures of spread include;
➢ Avoid contact with signs and symptoms
➢ Avoid touching your eyes, nose, and mouth with unwashed hands
➢ Wash hands often with soaps and running water for at least 20 seconds
➢ Stay when you experience similar symptoms
➢ Sick encouraged to always wear a face mask
➢ Cover mouth and nose when sneezing
➢ Regularly disinfect frequently touched objects.
Aunu explained that the effects of COVID-19 on the rural community, they were negative and positive which include;
➢ School dropouts
➢ Early marriages
➢ Death
➢ Domestic violence
➢ Hardworking habits
➢ Long-life projections
➢ Health awareness as individual intake
A presentation by Aunu on a survey conducted between August 2020 and September 2021 indicates that people in the urban areas were most affected by COVID-19, most females were affected as compared to males and the impacts on livelihoods were grave in the urban settings.
For instance;
➢ 30% of men were affected compared to 31% of women.
➢ 44% of people in the urban areas were affected compared to 42% in the rural areas.
➢ Income in the urban area was 33% while in the rural area was 51%.
Rural Perceptions of Treatment and Prevention Measures were stated as very poor;
➢ Attitude and uptake on the treatment and government`s policy of vaccination was literally poor.
➢ People perceived that the vaccine was not genuine enough to support life and fight against the virus.
➢ Leaders and the different stakeholders conducted mobilization and awareness creation on the benefits of the positive uptake of the vaccines.
The different types of perceptions manifested through;
➢ Vision
➢ Sound
➢ Touch
➢ Taste
➢ Smell
➢ Social
➢ Multi-modal perception
NB: 59.4% of people had poor perceptions of the COVID-19 vaccine while 40.6% had good perceptions.
The major myths and instincts about the COVID-19 vaccine in rural areas include;
➢ Free things are always bad and thus the vaccine is not worth taking.
➢ Community people say they have stronger immunity than what the vaccine will give them for survival against the virus.
➢ COVID-19 is for urban/town people who are exposed to open places.
➢ All will die be they are vaccinated or not.
In a move to address the myths, Aunu told the journalists that they;
➢ Involved all categories of leaders to create awareness about the dangers and risks of not getting vaccinated.
➢ People who are not vaccinated and without vaccination cards were denied treatment at health facilities.
➢ Created vaccination points at all public places and gatherings for easy access.
➢ Conducted health service outreaches and married vaccinations as well at different points and activities.
The journalists also highlighted key elements and myths that could have affected the uptake of the COVID-19 vaccination among the public.
➢ Rose Mary Anena of Radio Pacis says that information had been circulating that vaccines cause erectile dysfunction and infertility.
➢ Tracy Aciro of Mega Fm noted that the circulation of fake vaccination cards also demoralized some people from embracing the vaccination drive.
➢ Tracy added that information also circulated that miscarriage in women was also linked to the COVID-19 vaccines, hence deterring people from embracing them.
➢ Emmy Ojara also noted that there was a communication gap in creating awareness of the COVID-19 vaccination.
➢ David Okema of Daily Express noted that people worried that the vaccines could have negative effects on an unborn child if administered to a pregnant mother.
However, Aunu said all the myths on the adverse effects of the vaccines were untrue because they passed all tests but aligned some effects to low body immunities and underlying health conditions.
She also advised people who suffered from COVID-19 to seek regular medical checkups noting that the disease takes time to heal.
Elvis Okello, the Gulu district biostatistician also presented the current state of the COVID-19 situation in the district and what they are doing to ensure that people remain safe from the scourge.
➢ Okello said that Gulu district since 2022 conducted at least 200,000 tests.
➢ Many people were confirmed positive.
➢ The district currently has no positive case.
➢ The district is not currently conducting COVID-19 tests.
➢ The district has no operational COVID-19 treatment center.
➢ Gulu district is stuck with expired COVID-19 test kits.
➢ Gulu district has 63% of people vaccinated against COVID-19.
➢ 63,090 doses of COVID-19 vaccines have been wasted (expired, broken, opened, and not used).
➢ Gulu district received people who died of COVID-19.
➢ Gulu district registered 593 adverse events/effects resulting from COVID-19 vaccination.
➢ Gulu district has 3,750 doses of J&J. vaccines and 762 doses of Sinovac vaccines left and about to expire before October 2023.
Okello says that the district has recommended and discovered that there are;
➢ There is no strong social protection for survivors of COVID-19.
➢ Limited guidelines on contact tracing.
➢ No arrangement for mental health support to survivors of COVID-19.
➢ Limited information on COVID-19 and vaccination.
➢ Rumors and misconceptions on COVID-19.
➢ Challenges with rumors and misconceptions about COVID-19 vaccines.
➢ Now strengthened coordination and integration of health services.
Ms Florence Awilo, a survivor of COVID-19 in 2021 also shared her experience with the disease and COVID-19 vaccination.
➢ She said that she suffered stigma from the community.
➢ She was abandoned for having COVID-19.
➢ She experienced all the signs and symptoms f COVID-19 and willingly sought medical attention.
➢ She was treated at the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) at Lacor Hospital for one day.
➢ She became an advocate to create awareness of COVID-19 preventive measures.
➢ She is still recovering and has difficulties and pains in her left body parts.
➢ After the COVID-19 vaccination she experienced pains in her right limb.
➢ She bled after some minor cough days after being vaccinated.
➢ She believes that COVID-19 cures if treated well.
After the whole presentation, journalists developed ideas on COVID-19-related preventive measures which they pledged to follow up for their different newsrooms.
The story ideas among others include;
➢ The dilemma that manufacturers of COVID-19 herbal medicines are faced with after the World Health Organization (WHO), declared that COVID-19 is no longer a global threat?
➢ The effects of COVID-19 vaccines; are the myths true?
➢ What has been set up in place to avert future outbreaks of COVID-19?
➢ Coping up with stigma after COVID-19 infection: The story of a survivor.
➢ Uncovering fake COVID-19 fake vaccination certificates.
➢ Has Uganda hit the COVID-19 vaccination target?
➢ Is Uganda prepared for another COVID-19 outbreak?
➢ The story of a COVID-19 survivor, what is the world missing?
➢ Why does the low uptake f COVID-19 vaccines persist in rural settings?
➢ President Museveni`s COVID-19 infection, what does it mean for Ugandans?
John Ken Okot, who guided the engagement said that the journalists will be followed up and assisted to pursue their stories.