For 150,000 shillings, Joel Obore promises more than a quick fix. He markets what he calls a “permanent” solution through AlphaMax M+ Coffee, an imported product he claims can treat a range of conditions—from cholesterol and kidney “blockages” to low sperm count. Using aggressive sales tactics, Obore presents the product as a medical breakthrough, often…
Mulago National Referral Hospital is grappling with a growing network of impostors posing as medical staff and extorting money from vulnerable patients and their families. On a recent evening in the Acute Children’s Emergency Ward, a woman known to patients as “Dr. Atieno” sat behind a desk with a blood pressure cuff around her neck,…
A new multi-agency initiative has been launched in Soroti City to curb rising HIV infections, with a focus on adolescents and young people amid growing concern over high transmission rates. The intervention, led by the Ministry of Health Uganda, the Uganda AIDS Commission and The AIDS Support Organisation, targets adolescent girls and young women aged…
Gulu Regional Referral Hospital has recorded a sharp rise in premature births, raising concern among health workers despite ongoing efforts to promote safer pregnancies. The hospital, which serves the Acholi sub-region and parts of northern Uganda, registered 7,632 normal deliveries last year, alongside 4,062 caesarean sections, according to maternity ward in-charge Rose Akumu Olok. Seven…
The Pathology Department at Mulago National Referral Hospital has introduced a WhatsApp-based system to help patients check the status of their biopsy results, easing long waits and cutting travel costs. The tool, developed by Dr. Sharif Musoke, an associate consultant pathologist, allows patients to receive updates remotely rather than returning repeatedly to the hospital. For…
The children come first—some shy, some playful, others clinging to their mothers’ dresses—each carrying a diagnosis that, in many Ugandan communities, is still misunderstood. Around them are their caregivers, mostly mothers, who have learned to navigate a world of whispered judgment, long hospital journeys, and, too often, abandonment. In Bukiike village in Nyenga Division, Buikwe…
In a milestone for global health research, the European Medicines Agency (EMA) has issued a positive scientific opinion for acoziborole, a single-dose oral treatment for gambiense human African trypanosomiasis—better known as sleeping sickness. The disease, caused by the parasite Trypanosoma brucei gambiense and transmitted by the tsetse fly, has long plagued rural communities across sub-Saharan…
Jane Kyarisima Mwesiga, the Deputy Head of Public Service incharge of Performance and Service Delivery has expressed concern over the untamed dual employment among health workers employed by the government. While the government has since enhanced salaries for health workers following a series of strikes and complaints, Mwesiga says they have so far found no…
Kalangala district is struggling with the growing aggressiveness by commercial sex agents who are recruiting more teenage girls into prostitution. The agents operate on the different landing sites in Kalangala, where they act as main links between commercial sex workers and their prospective clients, who include local fishermen and revelers in bars and other entertainment…
At least 15 high-tech beds inside the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) of Mulago National Referral Hospital are lying idle due to a chronic staffing shortage. Despite boasting a 27-bed capacity equipped with world-class technology valued at approximately UGX 200 billion, the hospital is forced to operate at less than half capacity. Currently, only 12 patients…
Results of a new study released on Tuesday indicate that health workers in maternity wards are not consistently practicing proper hand hygiene, putting mothers at risk of maternal infections, technically known as sepsis. Sepsis remains among the top three causes of maternal deaths in Uganda. In a study conducted across fifty-nine health facilities, researchers found that…
In the high-pressure environment of the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) at Mulago Specialized Hospital, the line between professional duty and personal trauma is razor-thin. For Martha Alupo, the unit’s in-charge, nine years in the ICU have demanded constant resilience. Chronic staffing shortages only deepen the strain—one that rarely ends at the hospital doors. “It’s a…
Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) continues to pose a serious global health threat, but experts at a recent AMR Dialogues session warned that solutions must go beyond science and medicine to include gender equity, youth participation, and community-centered approaches. The discussion highlighted how women, gender-diverse communities, and young people experience disproportionate risks of infection, drug resistance, and…
As Africa enters a decisive decade in the fight against malaria, a new generation of African scientists is shaping the future of malaria research, innovation, and public health leadership. They are driven by personal experience, community connection, and the urgent reality of a preventable disease that still claims hundreds of thousands of lives each year…
Professor Abdoulaye Djimdé, a globally recognised malaria researcher from Mali, has been appointed to the United Nations Secretary-General’s Scientific Advisory Board, bringing an important African perspective to a global body that provides independent scientific advice on science, technology, and innovation for sustainable development. A leading expert in malaria genomics and drug resistance, Professor Djimdé heads the…
