Public Health Is Global Health: An Innovative Approach to Fighting Disease in Uganda

Distribution of basic care package"People around the world will live safer, healthier and longer lives through health promotion, health protection, and health diplomacy." - Overarching CDC Global Goal

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) global goal recognizes the critical role CDC plays in sharing knowledge, tools and other resources with people and partners around the world to promote health and prevent disease. CDC has full-time staff assigned to 43 countries and has several well-established global health programs that contribute to reducing global morbidity and mortality.

Uganda has first-hand knowledge and experience of how to improve health through an unprecedented intervention. The basic care package is an innovative group of products and services designed and selected based on operational research conducted in rural Uganda and evidence-based research conducted in Africa. There are five main components in the basic care package:

  • Cotrimoxazole (an antibiotic that reduces opportunistic infections in HIV positive persons)
  • Insecticide treated mosquito nets
  • Water vessels with a disinfection product
  • Information on how to access HIV testing, condoms, and family counseling
  • Educational materials on how to use each component

The basic care package in Uganda highlights global work that demonstrates a reduction of morbidity and mortality among HIV positives and their families.  Additionally, it demonstrates how to successfully integrate interventions to prevent multiple diseases; the importance of implementing research and evidence-based interventions; the challenge of designing sustainable interventions; and the value of getting buy-in at the national and local level to increase long-term health impact. 

Public Health Grand Rounds Goal

Research conducted in resource poor countries is shaping activities and policies in developed countries and helping to improve public health systems everywhere. Public health is not isolated in one country or region; rather, public health is global health.

This program explores the basic care package and how the research behind the intervention led to substantial program and policy changes throughout Uganda.

Public Health Grand Rounds Objectives

  • Describe the challenges in implementing the basic care package
  • Identify the strategies utilized to foster successful interactions across governmental and non-governmental organizations in order to design and implement the basic care package.
  • Describe the role public health research played in the policy and program changes that were made in Uganda.
  • Illustrate how the basic care package concept can be applied in developed countries as well as developing countries to reduce morbidity and mortality with major disease.

Audience

Public health leaders, managers and professionals from local and state health departments, non-governmental organizations, boards of health, hospitals, public and private clinics, academic institutions, staff members of international development organizations and federal agencies, state and local governmental officials and staff, and others who are interested in the basic care program or concept in Uganda and how a thoughtful and well researched public health intervention can effect policy change.