Dr. Jane Ruth Aceng
Health Care Leadership of The Year
Dr. Jane Ruth Aceng
Health Care Leadership, 2021.
Born in May 1968, Dr. Jane Ruth Aceng is currently the Minister of Health of the Republic of Uganda, a position she was appointed to in June 2016 by President Yoweri Museveni. She has provided solid to the health sector during the COVID-19 pandemic. From the outset, when His Excellency, President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni declared the COVID-19 fight as a battle, Dr. Aceng rallied the entire team at the Ministry of Health to confront the pandemic, variously sensitizing the entire Ugandan population to positively respond to calls to adhere to the Standard Operating Procedures, to test in time, to listen to science, and to accept to sacrifice social pleasures to successfully confront the pandemic. From frequent briefings of the nation on media in the presence of other scientists, to briefing of MPs, to attending national prayer meetings organized by the President, to traversing the nation preaching about the SOPs, Dr. Aceng led a team that numerous times risked their own lives in the line of duty. Aceng had earlier served as Director General of Health Services in the Ministry of Health after working as Executive Director of Lira Regional Referral Hospital. Recently elected in national elections as Woman Member of Parliament representing the newly created Lira City, Dr. Aceng holds a Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery from Makerere University Medical School; a Master of Medicine in Pediatrics (Master of Public Health from Makerere University College of Health Sciences), a Diploma in Health Systems Management awarded by the Galilee International Management Institute, in Israel. She has served on many medical boards in this country and has participated and published in her field of medicine. She is married to Dr. Andrew Alyao Ocero.
Dr. Joseph Epodoi
Doctor of The Year
Dr. Joseph Cuthbert Epodoi
Doctor of The Year, 2021.
Dr. Joseph Cuthbert Epodoi is a senior consultant surgeon and urologist at Soroti Referral Hospital.
Dr. Epodoi hit the national news and limelight recently when he led a team of 15 physicians against all odds, to separate conjoined twins at Soroti Regional Referral Hospital, after the National Referral Hospital, Mulago, failed to handle the operation. With very limited resources, Dr. Epodoi took the risk and undertook the task at hand. He was also the first doctor in Uganda to deliver a baby who was implanted in the liver. Dr. Epodoi is not just an ordinary medical officer; he is a true definition of resilience and determination to achieve the best, even when situations are tough.
The first time he reached Kampala was only when he was joining Makerere University Medical School. He excelled at ordinary level and was admitted to King’s College Budo, but his parents could not afford the school fees of Shs 10,000 at Budo at the time. So, he remained in Teso College, but given his dedication, he excelled in Senior Six, and reconnected with his friends at the Medical School, where he studied Bachelor of Science in Medicine and Surgery. That was the first time he came to Kampala. Since then, he never looked back; today he is a Senior Consultant Surgeon and Urologist, Head of Surgery at Soroti Regional Referral Hospital. He holds a Master of Medicine in General Surgery and a Fellowship in Urology for East and Central Africa from Kilimanjaro Christian Medical College, Tanzania. He also has a Certificate in Endocrinology at Christian Medical College, India. He is married to Dr. Irene Chebet, who is a Medical Officer Special grade in Obstetrics and Gynecology, and together they have four children. Dr. Epodoi Joseph believes that a good doctor is one who is ethical and upholds the Hippocratic Oath, and practices what he or she preaches or teaches. He says a good doctor should be ready to learn all the time, no matter the source. His values include determination, focus and persistence.
Martin Lubega
Nurse of The Year
Lubega Martin
Nurse of The Year, 2021.
With other nurses, midwives and doctors, martin organized free online antenatal classes dubbed the Antenatal Ku Sunday sessions. Every Sunday during the lockdown, women logged in to get free pregnancy health education from Martin and his team of experts. Also, while Martin worked at Soroti Regional Referral Hospital, he was always the lead nurse conducting quality improvement research which greatly helped to improve nursing care in the hospital. For example, when he worked in the neonatal ward, he noticed many babies were dying because of insufficient oxygen distribution. As a result, he advocated for the immediate procurement of oxygen splitters to help in the distribution of oxygen to the neonates.
Christine Otai
Lifetime Achievement Award
Christine Otai
Lifetime Achievement Award, 2021.
Otai is a midwife with more than 30 years' experience caring for women and newborns. Before joining Adara as Newborn National Trainer, Christine was the in-charge of the neonatal Intensive Care Unit and maternity departments at Kiwoko Hospital. She started working with Kiwoko Hospital in 1989 when it was a health centre with a handful of maternity beds. Under her leadership, the hospital established a NICU that treats over 1,200 sick and vulnerable newborns every year. This Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) was one of the country's first and now provides some of the best quality care in Uganda. Christine was instrumental in making the NICU the place it is today. In her current role, Christine provides training and mentoring to neonatal nurses throughout the country. She has been influential in the establishment of other newborn units, including those at Nakaseke Hospital and Gulu Regional Referral Hospital. She is passionate to save newborn lives and determined to share her knowledge with others, no matter how far away. Throughout her accomplished career, Christine has saved thousands of lives and continues to impact thousands more through her countrywide mentorship.
Andrew Nsawotebba
Allied Health Worker of The Year
Nsawotebba Andrew
Allied Health Worker of The Year, 2021.
Andrew is a Laboratory Systems Strengthening Specialist who has expended his efforts across the private, public, and nonprofit sectors. He is one of three technical experts from Uganda appointed to the East African Regional Experts' Team on Certification of Designated Covid-19 Testing Labs. He led the establishment and operationalization of the first COVID-19 GeneXpert Border (Port Health) Laboratory and the Mutukula COVID-19 Testing Sub National Laboratory (which achieved ASLM 3 Stars in two months). He led the technical set-up and operationalization of the six private labs at the Entebbe COVID-19 testing center. These include Test & Fly, Same Day, Medipal, City Medicals, Case Hospital, and Safari.
MILCOT
Marternal and Child Healthcare
milcot
Marternal and Child Healthcare of The Year, 2021.
MILCOT stands for Mid-Wife Led Community Transformation. It was founded and is led by a young innovative midwife. It aims to bridge the gap that exists between the midwife and the local community by bringing midwifery services closer to the community through initiatives focusing on prevention of teenage pregnancies. MILCOT works under the supervision of the local government to improve maternal and child health in the community. To date, 1322 marginalized adolescents and young adults have been reached with SRHR information and services. MILCOT has built resilience of 11 nurses and midwives in leadership and mentored them in provision of effective and efficient preventive health services. MILCOT's work has inspired over 4000 nurses and midwives to tackle maternal health challenges while extending their services beyond clinic walls.
Catherine Nakasita
Award of Excellence in Palliative Care
Catherine Nakasita
Winner, Award of Excellence in Palliative Care, 2021.
Despite the struggles in Palliative care nursing and little support for palliative care graduates, Catherine has excelled in seeing that patients receive palliative care in a hard-to-reach rural hospital. She was the only trainee who completed the palliative care training in a 2017 cohort by the Institute of Hospice and Palliative Care in Africa. Most of the trainees dropped palliative care due to the limited funding by the Government. Catherine however never gave up. She decided to use the limited resources of Kitagata Hospital to advocate for palliative care. Later, she was promoted by the district in recognition of her services. She serves her patients with compassion and grace, and therefore deserves to be recognized for such impeccable care
Christine Takan
Pharmacovigilance Award
Christine Takan
Winner, Pharmacovigilance Award, 2021.
Through her sheer hardwork and dedication, Takan reported 164 Adverse Drug Reactions on Vigiflow, a web-based individual case safety report (ICSR) management system that is available for use by national pharmacovigilance centres of the WHO Programme for International Drug Monitoring. This action has helped save countless lives.
Stephen Lutoti
Pharmacist of The Year
Stephen Lutoti
Winner, Pharmacist of The Year category, 2021,
Dr. Lutoti is from Makerere University, Department of Pharmacy. He has excelled in research and pharmaceutical industry manufacture as the innovator of Elocof herbal cough mixture and eloxide. Dr. Lutoti has widely promoted natural products with research, and has special interests in academia, policy analysis, justice, and rule of law. He has written, presented and published several research findings. By doing so, he has greatly widened the understanding of available natural and herbal remedies.
Christopher Nsamba
Health Innovation of The Year
Christopher Nsamba
Winner,The Health Innovation Award, 2021.
Nsamba is a Ugandan innovator who has designed and manufactured a modern baby incubator that contributes to saving premature lives in Neonatal Intensive Care Units. The machine is fully automated, controlled by a touch screen monitor and runs on Windows Operating System. Manufactured and tested in Uganda, this incubator can monitor oxygen in babies' blood as well as their heart beats per minute and show a pulse graph of the heart. If a baby stops breathing, the machine will immediately trigger an alarm system. The machine is also equipped with a wireless device which transmits data so that a nurse, for instance, can monitor the incubator from a distance.
Nsamba's incubator produces oxygen from its environment and the temperature can be set between 32° and 38° C. It is also designed with an anti-mosquito system which is controlled by the machine's computer that automatically humidifies and sanitizes the baby's environment. His baby incubator was deployed in 2017 at Mukono Hospital and in mid- 2020 to Kawempe National Referral Hospital.
Fr. Dr. Samuel Okori
Northen Health Community Worker
Rev. Fr. Dr. Samuel Okori
Winner, Community Health Worker - North, 2021.
He is a hardworking medical doctor selflessly working to save the lives of people in his community. He brought the first and only CT scan in Northern Uganda, which is in Aber Hospital, Oyam district. This has made it easy for patients from the North, East, West Nile, and parts of central Uganda to access affordable treatment from the hospital.
Red Cross
Covid-19 Treatment and Management
Uganda Red Cross Society
Winner, The Covid-19 Responders Award, 2021.
Through its networks of volunteers, the Uganda Red Cross Society has been at the forefront of the fight against the pandemic. At the border entry points, the society staff and their volunteers established screening and PSS posts where they supported the Government task in fighting the pandemic. In all districts, the Red Cross Society staff worked closely with the Government medical teams to sensitize and spread messages against the pandemic. They also set up several ambulances that traversed the country, to evacuate patients to be saved faster, whilst putting their own staff at risk. They gave selfless service to the people of Uganda and contributed to saving lives.
Aber Hospital
Faith/Mission Health Facility
Dr Arwinyo Baifa
Winner, Faith/Mission Health Facility, 2021.
Aber provides several unique services in the region. The hospital has acquired a CT scan, which is the first in the region. It also has the first internationally accredited laboratory in the region. Aber Hospital contributes substantially to the health of the people of Oyam and beyond. Patients in the region who required these services used to travel over 300km to access services in Central or Eastern region. Aber provides high quality health services to the community at affordable prices.
Radio West
Regioanl Health Worker - West
Radio West
Winner, Community Health Worker - West, 2021.
Radio West has been a consistent center of medical information in Western Uganda. Beyond entertaining audiences and broadcasting news, Radio West runs detailed health programs such as Manya Amagara Gaawe which address pertinent health issues in the communities it serves. Because of such community health programmes especially during the pandemic, the public voted Radio West as the 2021 Health Champion from Western Region.
Stephen Anguria
Community Health Worker - East
Stephen Anguria
Winner, Community Health Worker - East, 2021.
78 - year-old Stephen Anguria has defied age to serve his community. Stephen is collaborating and taking the lead to influence communities in Sebei region, Eastern Uganda to abandon the harmful Female Genital Mutilation (FGM). The retired politician is among the 130 members of the Male Action Groups (MAGs) champions in the three districts of Bukwo, Kapchorwa and Kween carrying out community sensitization on 'social norm change' to ensure young girls and women do not suffer under the dehumanizing traditional practice of the FGM. The men also mobilize communities to end child marriage. This is despite the high risk of the local communities going against anybody who opposes the very old cultural practice. For being so courageous and resilient in defense of the health of the women of this part of the nation, Anguria Stephen has been voted as man of the year from the East.
Nnabagereka of Buganda
Regional Health Champion - Central
Nnabagereka of Buganda
Winner, Regional Health Champion - Central, 2021.
The Nnabagereka has shown utmost dedication to improving the health and welfare of her people. Through the Nnabagereka Development Foundation which she founded in 2000, Her Royal Highness has been able to do charitable work for children, the youth, and women in education, health care, community empowerment, and the advancement of good cultural values and practices for sustainable development. She is an icon of service and has been highly recognized for her leadership in mobilizing, sensitizing and empowering children, the youth, and women, including children with disabilities, and for advancing "Obuntu bulamu" as a strategic approach in all programmes and projects, that empowers individuals to reclaim their cultural heritage and encourages the use of cultural values as an engine for human development.
Fahd Henry Ssenfuma
Pharmaceutical Supply Chain Award
Anna Maria Gwokyalya
Student Innovation Award
Gwokyalya Anna Maria
Winner, Student Innovation Award, 2021.
Gwokyalya is a 4th Year Medical student at Makerere University. She published an animated COVID-19 comic book titled “The Mugishas’ tale.”
The innovation aims at increasing children’s unlimited access to information on COVID-19. She designed the book containing a compilation of simple and comprehensible information on mainly symptoms, transmission, and prevention of COVID-19 disease. Through it, majority of children who do not have access to social media or television and radio, (especially at school), find it very easy to have a book they can refer to whenever they need to be reminded about COVID-19 and its prevention. As an illustrated animation, it is attractive to children aged between 3 to 12years, i.e., those in nursery and primary school. The result is that more children in this age bracket are more likely to read widely. The book will be launched this month during the antimicrobial resistance awareness week. Great innovation from a student….
Alive medical services
Private Health Facility of The Year
Alive Medical Services
Winner, Private Health Facility of The Year category, 2021.
Alive Medical Services provides free, comprehensive HIV/AIDS/Sexual Reproductive Health and Rights (SRHR) services to over 154,431 clients annually including over 100,000 youth, adolescent girls and young women, orphans, vulnerable and marginalized populations. Alive Medical Services is a high-volume ART clinic which has tremendously contributed to the HIV/AIDS response and reduced new HIV infection. During the COVID-19 pandemic, Alive Medical Services reprogrammed operations to enable the much-needed HIV services especially ARVS, to continue to be delivered to HIV positive clients.
Kawempe National Referral
Public Facility of The Year
Kawempe National Referral Hospital
Winner, Public Health Facility of The Year category, 2021.
Despite limited resources and an overwhelming number of clients with different complications, Kawempe National Referral Hospital continues to extend quality services to mothers. Her services as a national referring facility have gradually reduced maternal and child mortality in areas around Kampala.
Lilian Nuwabaine
Midwife of The Year
Lillian Niwabaine
Midwife of the Year, 2021.
We often tend to think midwives only belong in labour suites. But Lillian Nuwabine is defying this. She has provided support training to midwives and nurses across the country in areas that are struggling with high rates of maternal and neonatal mortality. Lillian has offered both hands-on and online training to over 1,500 midwives and nurses in Central, Eastern, Western, and Northern Uganda. During the pandemic, as many health workers grappled with infection prevention and control, Lillian thoughtfully started an online training for nurses and midwives on infection prevention and control, leadership, and respectful maternity care.
Andrew Kamau
Leadership Dedicated Health Worker
Dr. Andrew Kamau
Leadership Dedicated Health Worker, 2021.
Dr. Andrew Kamau stood out with his rare dedication during the surge in ICU COVID-19 cases. At a time when the risks posed by increasing cases of the pandemic created more debate for pay to health workers, and with a number absconding from work, Dr Kamau led teams of nurses and ICU staff to work overtime, going sometimes for over 72 hours in shifts to cover for the shortage of staff, to deliver much needed care to patients in the ICU. He led teams at TMR Hospital in Naalya, and Medipal in Kololo. He facilitated the recognition of the two hospitals as centers of excellence for ICU care. He advocated for better protection of his ICU staff through provision of the PPEs and ensured bus transport was availed to late night staff for safe drop-off to their homes. His work embodied values of Integrity, Ethics, Compassion and Empathy. He is truly a fearless COVID-19 warrior.
Henry Mugenyi
Health Journalist of The Year
Henry Mugenyi
Health Journalist of The Year, 2021.
This award goes to Henry Mugenyi, a broadcast journalist with NBS Television. Henry is one of the most talented and tenacious journalists in Uganda. He is very passionate about disseminating health information to the public. Through his reporting, he has ensured that many Ugandans in different communities’ access health information in real time. He often pushes for government accountability on health issues, as well as private health providers. He uses evidence and research to back up his stories, a quality that is rare among some of his peers. He is a befitting Health Journalist of the Year 2021!
HISP Uganda
Use of ICT To Improve Patient Care
HISP UGANDA
Winner, Use of ICT to Improve Patient Care category, 2021.
HISP Uganda has supported the Ministry of Health, health sector development and implementing partners, and District Health Teams with implementation of health management information systems based on the District Health Information Systems Software. These include the routine electronic health management information system(eHMIS) used by districts to routinely share data from facilities to national level seamlessly, on a weekly, monthly, quarterly, and annual basis. In addition, HISP Uganda has supported the Strategic Information Research and Innovations (SIRI) pillar of the Incident Management Team (IMT) with applications to support the COVID-19 response including the Covid-19 Vaccination eRegistry, COVID-19 certification portal, Covid-19 monitoring dashboard, the electronic integrated disease surveillance and response system used for surveillance data management at the Points of Entry, Covid-19 treatment units, and Home Based-Care.
