Browsing by Author "Anguzu, Patrick"

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    Impact of insecurity, the AIDS epidemic, and poverty on population health: disease patterns and trends in Northern Uganda.
    (The American journal of tropical medicine and hygiene, 2001) Accorsi, Sandro; Fabiani, Massimo; Lukwiya, Matthew; Ravera, Maurizio; Ojom, Lawrence; Manenti, Fabio; Anguzu, Patrick; Dente, Maria G.; Declich, Silvia
    A retrospective analysis of the discharge records of 186,131 inpatients admitted to six Ugandan hospitals during 1992–1998 was performed to describe the disease patterns and trends among the population of Northern Uganda. In all hospitals, malaria was the leading cause of admission and the frequency of admissions for malaria showed the greatest increase. Other conditions, such as malnutrition and injuries, mainly increased in the sites affected by civil conflict and massive population displacement. Tuberculosis accounted for the highest burden on hospital services (approximately one-fourth of the total bed-days), though it showed a stable trend over time. A stable trend was also observed for acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS), which is in contrast to the hypothesis that AIDS patients have displaced other patients in recent years. In conclusion, preventable and/or treatable communicable diseases, mainly those related to poverty and poor hygiene, represent the leading causes of admission and death, reflecting the socioeconomic disruption in Northern Uganda.
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    Implementation of infection control in health facilities in Arua district, Uganda: a cross-sectional study
    (BMC infectious Diseases, 2015) Wasswa, Peter; Nalwadda, Christine K.; Buregyeya, Esther; Gitta, Sheba N.; Anguzu, Patrick; Nuwaha, Fred
    At least 1.4 million people are affected globally by nosocomial infections at any one time, the vast majority of these occurring in low-income countries. Most of these infections can be prevented by adopting inexpensive infection prevention and control measures such as hand washing. We assessed the implementation of infection control in health facilities and determined predictors of hand washing among healthcare workers (HCWs) in Arua district, Uganda. We interviewed 202 HCWs that included 186 randomly selected and 16 purposively selected key informants in this cross-sectional study. We also conducted observations in 32 health facilities for compliance with infection control measures and availability of relevant supplies for their implementation. Quantitative data underwent descriptive analysis and multiple logistic regressions at 95 % confidence interval while qualitative data was coded and thematically analysed. Most respondents (95/186, 51 %) were aware of at least six of the eight major infection control measures assessed. Most facilities (93.8 %, 30/32) lacked infection control committees and adequate supplies or equipment for infection control. Respondents were more likely to wash their hands if they had prior training on infection control (AOR = 2.71, 95 % CI: 1.03–7.16), had obtained at least 11 years of formal education (AOR = 3.30, 95 % CI: 1.44–7.54) and had reported to have acquired a nosocomial infection (AOR = 2.84, 95 % CI: 1.03–7.84). Healthcare workers are more likely to wash their hands if they have ever suffered from a nosocomial infection, received in-service training on infection control, were educated beyond ordinary level, or knew hand washing as one of the infection control measures. The Uganda Ministry of Health should provide regular in-service training in infection control measures and adequate necessary materials.