Advancement in Combating Poor Birth Outcomes in Uganda

Health Coach Enlists the Entire Community in an Effort to Improve Maternal Health

Situation

Uganda has a long history of poor birth outcomes. This problem is compounded by a lack of trust from a community dismayed by years of poor quality care and unavailability of essential health supplies.

Solutions

Healthcare worker, Alex Mokori participated in RGH’s online 7‐Day ”Health for All NOW (HFAN)” program. He was motivated to start, “Dream Come True (DCT),” a project to combat the poor birth outcomes in Uganda such as premature delivery, low birth weight, stillbirth and increased levels of childhood anemia. Alex worked with interns from the area’s university to reach pregnant women and refer them to the hospital to get IFA (Iron Folic Acid) tablets, prenatal related services and organize home visits to check progress.

Alex also started proactively meeting with the leadership of two local hospitals and gained their support of his project. He then began to work with the health workers at the nearby antenatal clinic (ANC) to orient health workers on the provision of IFA and how to counsel pregnant women. Alex and his team continued their efforts in the nearby villages and communities by holding meetings to educate district leaders, local council chairpersons, and partners of the pregnant women so they could all support the women in accessing ANC services.

Success

Since starting his project, Alex has helped to directly reach more than 40 households. It is now routine for health workers in the community to make sure all pregnant women consistently receive IFA, counseling on the importance of IFA and its proper use, and reminders to return for their follow‐up appointment.

Alex has successfully made use of coalitions of dedicated members to create significant interventions for clients at district, facility and village levels. He is a true leader in realizing health in Uganda.

In his own words: “I have determination to succeed and to help other young people like myself to believe in themselves and to work towards achieving significant goals in reducing the burden of disease in developing countries. I want to work hard and become a coach.”

About this Series

RGH’s 7-Day online programs provide participants with dynamic capacity building solutions that empower real country-led development. This series highlights the success of participants as they strive to bring better health and well-being to their communities and countries.