Find Health and Medical expertise in Uganda

Health services in Uganda are provided by a mix of public and private sector organisations and NGOs. Public sector facilities include two national referral hospitals, both in Kampala; 11 regional referral hospitals; 43 general hospitals; and 112 district health centres. Notable private hospitals include International Hospital Kampala and Kololo Hospital, also in Kampala.

Pharmaceuticals are a major constituent of the country’s total imports, although there is a small-scale pharmaceutical industry involved in distribution, packaging and assembling products.

The UNDP has noted that progress has been registered in reducing the burden of malaria and tuberculosis. Equally, improved access to medical treatment has reduced the mortality rate associated with HIV/AIDS. However, it has been found that the prevalence rate among 15–24-year-olds has increased, which could be attributed to improved treatment indirectly contributing to a rise in the number of new infections by prolonging the lives of those living with HIV.

A World Health Organization (WHO) report in 2009 found that the resources available for health are less than required to deliver the Uganda National Minimum Health Care Package. Public health care is free, in theory, but there are often unofficial fees and patients can be asked to buy drugs and surgical items privately. In rural areas, health care coverage can be patchy and the costs of travelling to the nearest clinic are prohibitive for some.

The WHO Country Co-operation Strategy (2009–14) prioritises planning to ensure equitable resource allocation and harmonisation of donor projects, as well as generally strengthening the country’s health systems. The National Health Policy II (2010–20) includes a Health Sector Strategic and Investment Plan, the aim of which is ‘the attainment of a good standard of health by all people in Uganda, in order to promote a healthy and productive life’.

Communicable diseases along with maternal, perinatal and nutritional conditions in Uganda accounted for an estimated 60% of all mortality in 2012. The prevalence of HIV in Uganda, as a percentage of population aged 15–49 years, stood at 7.4% in 2013. While this is high, there has been an overall reduction in prevalence since records began in 1990. In 2011 there were 2,662,258 reported cases of malaria in the country – a significant increase from 231,873 in 2011. In the period 1990–2013 the estimated incidence of tuberculosis (TB) fell by more than 500, to 166 cases per 100,000 people, and mortality (when excluding cases comorbid with HIV) from tuberculosis (TB) more than halved. Non-communicable diseases (NCDs) in Uganda accounted for an estimated 27% of all mortality in 2012. The most prevalent NCDs in Uganda were cardiovascular diseases, which accounted for 9% of total deaths across all age groups in 2012. Cancer, non-communicable variants of respiratory diseases and diabetes contributed 5%, 2% and 1% to total mortality, respectively (2012).

Government expenditure

Less than a quarter of health care in Uganda (24%) was government funded in 2012. The remaining 76% was paid for by patients or funded by other non-governmental entities, such as private insurers, charities or employers.

In 2013 government expenditure on health was 4.3% of GDP. In the most recent survey, conducted between 1997 and 2010, there were 12 doctors, and 131 nurses and midwives per 100,000 people. Additionally, in 2011, 58% of births were attended by qualified health staff and in 2013, 82% of one-year-olds were immunised with a dose of measles. In 2012, 75% of people were using an improved drinking water source and 35% had access to adequate sanitation facilities. The most recent survey, conducted in the period 2000–11, reports that Uganda has 3 pharmaceutical personnel per 100,000 people.

Uganda was not an original signatory to the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, but acceded to it in 1987 and has written the covenant into law. It includes ‘the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health’. The covenant commits signees to providing healthy and hygienic environmental conditions, controlling epidemic diseases, improving child health and facilitating access to health services without discrimination.

Health and Medical organisations in Uganda
International Hospital Kampala
Kampala Hospital
Kololo Hospital
Mulago Hospital
Surgery, The
Uganda Virus Research Institute
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