Access to health services is important in promoting good health and wellbeing. Having realized the gap between the health and wellbeing of under-served populations in Uganda’s Isingiro District, the door to door integrated health campaign was rolled out in the United Nations’ Millennium Villages cluster to promote access to health services to those most in need.

The three month exercise began with the registration and identification of under-served communities. Together with the Isingiro District’s local Government and local leaders within the cluster area, the program delivered health services which included the deworming of all children under five and adults. HIV counseling and testing (HCT) was a central focus of the campaign in which 791 adults were tested. All positive cases were then enrolled into care and started on Antiretroviral Therapy (ART).

During the campaign, I conducted condom use education and distribution. With the assistance of a community health worker I carried out mid-upper arm circumference (MUAC) exams for children suspected of malnutrition. The same measurements were carried out for pregnant mothers who benefited from other services including providing folic acid, antenatal care checks, postnatal care and referrals.

Family planning was the other service that saw a huge turnout of women of reproductive age (15-49 years) seeking contraceptive services. The majority of the women were started on long-term family planning methods such as the Implanon implant and intra-uterine devices (IUD). The campaign increased uptake of out-patient services in which thousands of people received Zinc tablets (Zinkid) for diarrhea, Magnesium, Paracetamol, and  Albendazole among others drugs.

The communities benefited from a large distribution of mosquito nets while Rapid Diagnostic Tool (RDT) was used to test for Malaria in clients who presented clinical signs. Imperative to note, I spearheaded the water, sanitation and hygiene education in the households that were visited.

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