BAYLOR COLLEGE OF MEDICINE CHILDREN'S FOUNDATION UGANDA

Implementing the 7-1-7 target has significantly improved rapid response efforts for disease outbreaks. Learn how Baylor Foundation Uganda, with support from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and in collaboration with Uganda's Ministry of Health, partnered with key stakeholders to overcome critical challenges in rapid disease response. This collaboration has enabled swift detection, notification, and response to measles and Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever outbreaks in Uganda’s Kasese and Kiboga districts. Read more: https://lnkd.in/d2MYaCYR This story is documented by Resolve To Save Lives, a global public health organization dedicated to strengthening countries’ ability to prevent, detect, and respond to infectious disease threats. Dithan Kiragga, Texas Children's Global Health Network, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Resolve To Save Lives, Ministry of Health - Uganda, Peter J. Elyanu, Robert Majwala, DANIEL EURIEN, Albert Maganda, Evarist Ayebazibwe, Mercy Wanyana, Issa Makumbi

Today, Monday, October 28, 2024, Dr. Diana Atwiine (wearing a green coat), the Permanent Secretary of the @MinofHealthUG, launched the “Integrating and Scaling Up Sickle Cell Disease (SCD) Care in Primary Health Services” program during a colorful event at Kayunga Regional Referral Hospital. Dr. Atwiine and the delegation from the Ministry of Health were accompanied by key stakeholders, including Dr. Dithan Kiragga, Dr. Catharine Grimes, President of the Bristol Myers Squibb Foundation (dressed in a white dress with blue flowers), Dr. Nmazuo Ozuah (Associate Director of Texas Children’s Global HOPE), Dr. Mike Mizwa (CEO of Baylor Global Health), and Dr. Joseph Lubega (Director of Texas Children’s Global HOPE). They were also joined by our Board members: Mr. Thomson Odoki, Mr. Joseph Kizza, and Mr. Patrick Ngolobe. This initiative is in collaboration with Texas Children’s Global HOPE program and the Baylor College of Medicine Children’s Foundation-Uganda, MoH Uganda- Department of National Health Laboratory and Diagnostic Services(NHLDS), Makerere University College of Health Sciences, the @Uganda Paediatric Association, and Mulago National Referral Hospital In honor of this milestone for children with sickle cell disease, our partners symbolically planted trees to commemorate the day. #SCDCare Dithan Kiragga, Texas Children's Global Health Network, Bristol Myers Squibb, Ministry of Health - Uganda

Today, Dr. Dithan Kiragga warmly welcomed Mrs. Catharine Grime, President of the Bristol Myers Squibb Foundation; Dr. Nmazuo Ozuah, Associate Director of Texas Children’s Global HOPE; Mr. Mike Mizwa, CEO of Baylor Global Health; and Dr. Joseph Lubega, Director of Texas Children’s Global HOPE, to the Baylor Foundation Uganda Clinical Center of Excellence in Mulago. Thanks to the support of the Bristol Myers Squibb Foundation, Baylor College of Medicine, and Texas Children's Hospital, the construction of the Clinical Center of Excellence became a reality. Dithan Kiragga, Texas Children's Global Health Network, Baylor College of Medicine, Catharine Grimes, MBA, Joseph Lubega, Nmazuo Ozuah, Mike Mizwa, Jacqueline Balungi Kanywa, 📸 neeson musa

IN PURSUIT OF EXCELLENCE: We are pleased to announce that Evarist Ayebazibwe, a Monitoring and Evaluation Officer with the Global Health Security Program, made a poster presentation at the recent Joint Annual Scientific Conference. His poster, titled "A Localized Mentorship Approach to Enhance Infection Prevention and Control at Points of Entry in Western Uganda," was awarded third place. Baylor Foundation Uganda was also recognized for its valuable contribution to the Joint Annual Scientific Health Conference. Dithan Kiragga, Texas Children's Global Health Network, Peter J. Elyanu, Robert Majwala, Peter Mukiibi

Empowering others to make a difference: We were very privileged to host Dr. Kathleen Neuzil, the Director of the National Institutes of Health Fogarty International Center (NIH-FIC) in the USA. She was accompanied by Professor Nakanjako Damali, the Principal of the College of Health Sciences, and Professor Annettee Nakimuli, the Dean of the School of Medicine. As one of the beneficiaries of NIH-FIC's 32 years of support to Uganda, we were honored to share with her the contributions that former NIH-FIC scholars currently working at Baylor Foundation Uganda (BFU) have made at both national and regional levels. So far, NIH-FIC has awarded scholarships to ten BFU staff to pursue master's and doctoral degrees in Houston, Texas, USA. Dr. Betty Nsangi was the first BFU recipient of this prestigious scholarship. Dithan Kiragga, Texas Children's Global Health Network, Fogarty International Center at NIH, Jacqueline Balungi Kanywa, Peter J. Elyanu, Dr. Betty Nsangi, Hilda Sekabira, Rogers Sekabila, Grace Kisitu, Michael Juma, Victoria Ndyanabangi, Paul Tumbu

The Ministry of Health presented $125,965 worth of equipment to implementing partners on October 10, 2024, during a ceremony held at the Baylor College of Medicine Children's Foundation-Uganda (Baylor Foundation Uganda). More than 300 HC IIs will receive the equipment that Baylor Foundation Ugandaprocured with funding from PEPFAR via the U.S. Centers for Disease Control andPrevention (U.S. CDC). This donation aims to improve services for the prevention of mother-to-child transmission of HIV at lower-level healthcare facilities, which pregnant women mostly access in the rural communities. We thank the AIDS development partners for supporting our efforts to eliminate mother-to-child transmission of HIV in Uganda. To read the full story, click: https://lnkd.in/dxjEtGri Dithan Kiragga, Texas Children's Global Health Network, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Ministry of Health - Uganda, Albert Maganda

GREAT NEWS!! We are delighted to announce that Baylor Foundation Uganda has been awarded UK funding to support the Ministry of Health to respond to the Mpox outbreak in the country. The funds will support coordination, surveillance, risk communication, and community engagement. Let's continue to join hands to create a Uganda where we live healthy and fulfilled lives.  https://lnkd.in/drHrs27Y Dithan Kiragga, Texas Children's Global Health Network, Ministry of Health - Uganda

Did you know that young people are vital in helping their peers? Baylor Foundation Uganda-supported healthcare facilities are implementing the national Young Adolescents and Peer Support (YAPS) program for Adolescents and Young People Living with HIV (AYPLHIV) in the Bunyoro region. The program that is supported by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is engaging specially-trained young adolescents to provide AYPLHIV with information, support, and assistance to live positively with HIV. AYPLHIV often encounter significant barriers, including accessing healthcare services, low awareness of their HIV status, overcoming stigma, and remaining on treatment. By creating a space where AYPLHIV can exchange stories and get psychosocial support from peers who are sympathetic to their situation, the YAPS program is offering hope to overcome these obstacles. #HIV, #Adolescents, #Peers Dithan Kiragga, Calvin Epidu, Texas Children's Global Health Network, Andrew Ndawula

Yesterday, Baylor Foundation Uganda (BFU) was privileged to host Kathy Gallagher, the CDC regional associate director for the Division of Global Health Protection. At the meeting, BFU and the Infectious Diseases Institute, both supported by the CDC, shared their respective experiences implementing the global health security agenda in Uganda. Additionally, they shared how they are collaborating with the Ministry of Health to respond to the Mpox outbreak in the country.  #GlobalHealthSecurity https://lnkd.in/dcxJJh6H Dithan Kiragga, Peter J. Elyanu, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Robert Majwala, Kenneth Byoona, Peter Mukiibi, Infectious Diseases Institute (IDI)

Since its establishment in 2006, the Baylor Foundation Uganda (BFU) has worked towards improving the quality of life for children affected by HIV. This week, the BFU team met with counterparts at the IMPAACT Annual Meeting 2024 in Virginia, USA, to share ideas and knowledge with internationally renowned researchers. Drs. Addy Kekitiinwa and Violet Korutaro made presentations on the P1115 and IMPAACT 2017 studies and the social behavioral scientific core for the IMPAACT 2009 study, respectively. The contribution of these studies to global advancements in pediatric HIV treatment and care was well-received. #HIVResearch https://lnkd.in/dcxJJh6H Dithan Kiragga, Patricia Nahirya-Ntege, Adeodata Kekitiinwa, Violet Korutaro, Victoria Ndyanabangi, Texas Children's Global Health Network, The IMPAACT Network