Uganda has an organized national health system and health delivery in place within the strategic frame work and focus. (HSSIP 11,July 2010) The national health system is comprised of both private and public sectors.

The private health sector is comprised of Private Not for Profit (PNFP), Private Health Practitioners (PHPs), and Traditional Contemporary Medicine Practitioners. (TCMPs). These private sectors contribute to about 50% of the Health care delivery.

The public sectors include Government Health facilities; Health services departments of different Ministries. Several Ministry of Health functions have been delegated to National Autonomous Institutions like NDA.

Health services delivery is decentralized within national, districts and health sub districts. The lowest level is supposedly the VHTs, Volunteers in villages facilitating Health Promotion, service delivery, community participation, and empowerment.

At the district levels are health center III and II, with health center II providing a first level of interaction between the formal health sector and communities. These provide outpatient and community outreach services. The Health Center III provides basic preventive, promotive and curative services.

The next levels are general hospitals, which provide Health Center III broad services such as surgeries and blood transfusions. They are also for research and training. The regional referrals provide a higher level with more specialized clinical services and also involve teaching and research.

The national referral Hospitals are most comprehensive as they provide the highest level of specialist services in addition to all the other clinical services. The referral system is from the lowest to the highest level of care in the service delivery system.

Reference:

MOH; Health Sector Strategic Plan Promoting People’s Health to enhance Social Economic Development (2010/11-2014/15), July 2010 [online] Available

www.health.go.ug/doc/HSSIP10.pdf

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