Health, wellbeing and care Archives - Page 6 of 7 - Social Science in Humanitarian Action Platform

Research paper

“There are many fevers”: Communities’ perception and management of Febrile illness and its relationship with human animal interactions in South-Western Uganda

Diagnosing the causative agent of febrile illness in resource-limited countries is a challenge in part due to lack of adequate diagnostic infrastructure to confirm cause of infection. Most febrile illnesses (>60%) are non-malarial, with a significant proportion being zoonotic and…

Central and East Africa Hub

PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases

2022

Research paper

Behind the scenes: International NGOs’ influence on reproductive health policy in Malawi and South Sudan

Global health donors increasingly embrace international non-governmental organisations (INGOs) as partners, often relying on them to conduct political advocacy in recipient countries, especially in controversial policy domains like reproductive health. Although INGOs are the primary recipients of donor funding, they…

Central and East Africa Hub

Taylor & Francis Online

2019

Research paper

Men’s perceptions of women’s reproductive health in South Sudan

This paper draws on a qualitative study (n = 52) and applies a political ecology of health framework to examine men’s perceptions of women’s reproductive health in South Sudan. The findings suggest that political practices of place making configure men’s views of…

Central and East Africa Hub

Science Direct

2017

Research paper

Health services for women, children and adolescents in conflict affected settings: experience from North and South Kivu, Democratic Republic of Congo

The humanitarian response to the DRC’s Ebola health emergency between 2018-20 was met with popular resistance by local populations, drawing attention to the perceived failures of humanitarian responses in the country over decades. To declare Ebola a health disaster was…

Central and East Africa Hub

Springer Nature

2020

Research paper

Stigmatisation and rejection of survivors of sexual violence in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo

Studies report that between 6 per cent and 29 per cent of survivors of sexual violence in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) are rejected by their families and communities. This research project was designed to provide insights into…

Central and East Africa Hub

Wiley Online Library

2016

Research paper

Challenges of controlling sleeping sickness in areas of violent conflict: experience in the Democratic Republic of Congo

Human African trypanosomiasis (HAT), or sleeping sickness, is a fatal neglected tropical disease if left untreated. HAT primarily affects people living in rural sub-Saharan Africa, often in regions afflicted by violent conflict. Screening and treatment of HAT is complex and…

Central and East Africa Hub

Springer Nature

2011

Research paper

Maternal Psychological Distress and Perceived Impact on Child Feeding Practices in South Kivu, DR Congo

Maternal mental health problems are associated with poor child growth and suboptimal child feeding practices, yet little qualitative research has been conducted to understand mothers’ perceptions about how maternal mental ill health and child nutrition are related. This study among…

Central and East Africa Hub

Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health

2017

Research paper

Clinical trials as disease control? The political economy of sleeping sickness in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (1996–2016)

Human African Trypanosomiasis (HAT), commonly known as sleeping sickness, is closer than ever to being eliminated as a public health problem. The main narratives for the impressive drop in cases allude to drugs discovery and global financing and coordination. They raise questions…

Central and East Africa Hub

Social Science and Medicine

2022

Research paper

Resources and Rape: Congo’s (toxic) Discursive Complex

In the last decade, the rapes (of women) in, and the metaphoric raping (of natural resources) of, the Democratic Republic of Congo have received unprecedented attention from media, donors, and advocacy groups. Beginning in the early 2000s, these two narratives…

Cambridge University Press

2019

Research paper

‘A Real Woman Waits’ – Heteronormative Respectability, Neo-Liberal Betterment and Echoes of Coloniality in SGBV Programming in Eastern DR Congo

Drawing on archival and field research, this article critically examines the production and distribution of gender roles and expectations in SGBV programming, in particular in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). We find the underlying currents in some of these…

Central and East Africa Hub

Taylor & Francis Online

2019

Research paper

Violence, Well-Being and Level of Participation in Formal Education among Adolescent Girls in Eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo: The Role of Child Marriage

Child marriage is a well-recognized barrier to education, and exposes girls to an increased risk of violence along with other negative health and developmental outcomes. A quantitative survey was conducted with girls selected from 14 communities in South Kivu, Democratic…

Central and East Africa Hub

2018

Research paper

Sexual and gender based violence against men in the Democratic Republic of Congo: effects on survivors, their families and the community

Media and service provider reports of sexual and gender based violence (SGBV) perpetrated against men in armed conflicts have increased. However, response to these reports has been limited, as existing evidence and programs have primarily focused on prevention and response…

Central and East Africa Hub

Taylor & Francis Online

2011

Research paper

A man never cries: barriers to holistic care for male survivors of sexual violence in eastern DRC

While we know that most male survivors of conflict-related sexual violence in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) do not have access to care, little attention has been devoted to a systematic analysis of why this is so. Drawing…

Central and East Africa Hub

Taylor & Francis Online

2022

Thesis

A Gender Analysis of the Democratic Republic of Congo’s Health System Reform: An Opportune Moment to Build a Just and Inclusive Health System

This thesis examines key institutional and structural interventions and reforms in the health system of the DRC for their implications on health experienced by Congolese women from conception to beyond their reproductive years. This thesis suggests that healthcare reform efforts…

Central and East Africa Hub

Columbia University

2017

Research paper

Gender relations and women’s reproductive health in South Sudan

Drawing on Connell’s relational theory of gender, the authors of this study conducted focus group discussion and interviews with Fertit women in South Sudan concerning their ability to control their reproductive lives. Women reported little choice over the childbearing demands…

Central and East Africa Hub

2016

Research paper

Health Sector Recovery in Early Post-Conflict Environments: Experience from Southern Sudan

Health sector recovery in post-conﬂict settings presents an opportunity for reform: analysis of policy processes can provide useful lessons. The case of southern Sudan is assessed through interviews, literature review, and by drawing on experiences of former technical advisers to…

Central and East Africa Hub

2010

Research paper

Low Prevalence of Intestinal Schistosomiasis Among Fisherfolk Living Along the River Nile in North-Western Uganda: a Biosocial Investigation

This article asks: why is the prevalence of S. mansoni so low among fisherfolk in northern Uganda? Taking a biosocial approach, it suggests that the mass distribution of drugs, free of charge, has had an impact. However, the low prevalence…

Central and East Africa Hub

2016

Research paper

Understanding Perceptions on ‘Buruli’ in Northwestern Uganda: A Biosocial Investigation

This article explores perspectives on Buruli among fisherfolk in northwestern Uganda along the River Nile, where the ulcer has previously been documented. The findings are based on a long-term ethnographic study of health, healing and illness in this region, and…

Central and East Africa Hub

2018

Research paper

The ‘Other Diseases’ of the Millennium Development Goals: Rhetoric and Reality of Free Drug Distribution to Cure the Poor’s Parasites

A massive programme is now underway to treat the parasites of the poor in Africa via integrated vertical interventions of mass drug administration in endemic areas. The approach has been hailed as remarkably effective, with claims that there is now…

Central and East Africa Hub

2011

Research paper

De-Politicizing Parasites: Reflections on Attempts to Control the Control of Neglected Tropical Diseases

Large amounts of funding are being allocated to the control of neglected tropical diseases. Strategies primarily rely on the mass distribution of drugs to adults and children living in endemic areas. The approach is presented as morally appropriate, technically effective,…

Research paper

Border Parasites: Schistosomiasis Control among Uganda’s Fisherfolk

It is recognized that the control of schistosomisais in Uganda requires a focus on fisherfolk. Large numbers suffer from this water-borne parasitic disease; notably along the shores of lakes Albert and Victoria and along the River Nile. Since 2004, a…

Central and East Africa Hub

2012

Research paper

Resisting Control of Neglected Tropical Diseases: Dilemmas in the Mass Treatment of Schistosomiasis and Soil-Transmitted Helminths in North-West Uganda

A strong case has recently been made by academics and policymakers to develop national programmes for the integrated control of Africa’s ‘neglected tropical diseases’. Uganda was the first country to develop a programme for the integrated control of two of…

Central and East Africa Hub

Does Mass Drug Administration for the Integrated Treatment of Neglected Tropical Diseases really work? Assessing Evidence for the Control of Schistosomiasis and Soil-Transmitted Helminths in Uganda

Less is known about mass drug administration [MDA] for neglected tropical diseases [NTDs] than is suggested by those so vigorously promoting expansion of the approach. This paper fills an important gap: it draws upon local level research to examine the…

Central and East Africa Hub

2010

Research paper

The Violence of Healing

This essay discusses violence and healing in response to war, drawing attention to the idea that violence and healing are often closely interconnected, and what may be judged to be violent acts can be expected to play a crucial role…

Central and East Africa Hub

1997

Research paper

Justice at the Margins: Witches, Poisoners, and Social Accountability in Northern Uganda

Recent responses to people alleged to be ‘witches’ or ‘poisoners’ among the Madi of northern Uganda are compared with those of the 1980s. From 2006, a democratic system for dealing with suspects was introduced, whereby those receiving the highest number…

Central and East Africa Hub

2014

Research paper

Quests for Therapy in Northern Uganda: Healing at Laropi Revisited

This article presents a case of diachronic ethnography. It examines quests for therapy among the Madi people of northern Uganda. It is based on ethnographic fieldwork carried out in and around the small trading centre of Laropi; originally in the…

Central and East Africa Hub

2012

Research paper

Deworming Delusions? Mass Drug Administration in East African Schools

Recent debates about deworming school-aged children in East Africa have been described as the ‘Worm Wars’. The stakes are high. Deworming has become one of the top priorities in the fight against infectious diseases. Staff at the World Health Organization,…

Central and East Africa Hub

2016

Research paper

Therapy in Uganda: a failed MHPSS approach in the face of structural issues

The past 30 years have seen an unprecedented rise in attention towards the mental health of conflict-affected populations. The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that the burden of mental disorder among conflict-affected individuals may be as high as 22% and…

Central and East Africa Hub

2022

Research paper

Using feminist ‘reflexive practice’ to explore stress and well-being of local researchers in South Sudan

This article shares key findings and offer personal reflections on and suggestions for improving gender-based violence research using feminist methods. The authors reflect that while they themselves valued the sharing of personal reflections on emotional challenges that the research team…

Central and East Africa Hub

2019

Research paper

Participatory Ethnographic Evaluation and Research: Reflections on the Research Approach Used to Understand the Complexity of Maternal Health Issues in South Sudan

How can contextualised data be collected in a short time in conflict-affected sites? This paper shows how a Participatory Ethnographic Evaluation and Research (PEER) approach can overcome many of the challenges of conducting research in such conditions. Here, the authors…

Central and East Africa Hub

2016

Research paper

Mental health in South Sudan: a case for community-based support

Based on personal reflections of the authors who were engaged in mental health and psychosocial support programmes in South Sudan between 2013 and 2016, this article illustrates the constraints and challenges facing the sector at the time. The authors emphasise…

Central and East Africa Hub

2019

Research paper

Measuring health system resilience in a highly fragile nation during protracted conflict: South Sudan 2011–15

Complementing real-time data with survey data collected in South Sudan at independence (2011) and following 2 years of protracted conflict (2015), this study constructed and then compared a resilience index and stress index. Overall maternal, neonatal and child health coverage…

Central and East Africa Hub

2020

Research paper

Authority that is customary: Kitawala, customary chiefs, and the plurality of power in Congolese history

This paper uses the history of the religious/healing movement Kitawala in the Democratic Republic of Congo as a lens to explore the relationship between forms of state-sanctioned “customary” authority and alternative nodes of “authority that is customary.” Focusing on three…

Central and East Africa Hub

2020

Research paper

Maternal Vaccination in Uganda: Exploring Pregnant Women, Community Leaders and Healthcare Workers’ Perceptions

This research used qualitative methods to explore pregnant women, community leaders, healthcare workers, and programme managers’ perceptions of maternal vaccination in Kampala, Uganda. The authors found that public health messaging should target all community members, including partners and parents of…

Central and East Africa Hub

MDPI

2021

Research paper

Lives Interrupted: Navigating Hardship During COVID-19 Provides Lessons in Solidarity and Visibility for Mobile Young People in South Africa and Uganda

The COVID-19 pandemic has upended assumptions about livelihood security. The authors examine data from young women and men in South Africa and young female sex workers in Uganda to explore the inequalities and hardships experienced during the COVID-19 pandemic and…

Central and East Africa Hub

SAGE Publications

2021

Policy document

The Public Health Act, Uganda

The legal basis for public health state action, originally passed in 1935.

Central and East Africa Hub