Browsing by Author "Elklit, Ask"

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    ICD-11 Trauma Questionnaires for PTSD and Complex PTSD: Validation among Civilians and Former Abducted Children in Northern Uganda
    (Journal of Psychiatry, 2015) Dokkedah, Sarah; Oboke, Henry; Ovuga, Emilio; Elklit, Ask
    ICD-11 is expected to introduce a new diagnosis of C-PTSD, along with a revision of the current PTSD diagnosis. Are the suggested diagnostic tools for PTSD and C-PTSD valid in a developing country? Method: The tools have been tested on former abducted and regular civilians in northern Uganda (n=314), who have been influenced by the civil war that lasted for more than two decades. Results: The prevalence of either PTSD or C-PTSD was 36.6% and PTSD and C-PTSD was further found to correlate with symptoms of depression, anxiety and somatic complaints. Conclusion: Based on its findings the study concludes that the ICD-11 tools for PTSD and C-PTSD both appear to be valid as suggested by both discriminant and convergent validation of the tools. However, future research can benefit from studying cultural aspects of these diagnoses.
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    Preventing Suicide Behavior using Village Helpers in Post Conflict Northern Uganda
    (Makerere University College of Health Science, 2017) Oboke, Henry; Elklit, Ask; Ovuga, Emilio; Sodemman, Morten
    Suicide and suicide attempts are world-wide prevalent phenomena causing unnecessary deaths and injuries. Fortunately, these deaths and injuries are preventable through supportive interventions. However, methods and interventions for prevention are diverse and not fully transferable between countries, societies or cultures. This study investigated the feasibility of implementing a protocol for use by trained Village Helpers (VHs) to prevent suicides and suicide attempts in post-conflict Northern Uganda. We recruited and trained 54 VHs (22.2% females and 78.8 % men, age range 22-60 years, median 32 years) to identify and manage psychosocial problems, suicide communication, suicide risk and suicide attempts. The VHs recorded and compared data on all suicides and suicide attempts in 2015 and 2016 in the 54 parishes of Gulu district including reasons for the suicidal behavior against entry point prior to VHs engagement. We found a reduction of 36.8% completed suicides and of 64.9% suicidal attempts between the years of 2015 and 2016. VHs successfully identified and prevented psychosocial problems like conflicts and illnesses that would lead to suicidal behavior at the household level. VHs were also able to adequately counsel and stabilize those who attempted suicide and prevented further attempts in doing so. In conclusion, VHs were able to be trained and use the standardized Village Helper Suicide Prevention Protocol to prevent suicide and suicide attempts in post-conflict Gulu district of Northern Uganda. More research is needed to establish the effectiveness of VHs including studies of persistent problematic aspects of suicidal behavior for effective prevention programs and for generalization to other post-conflict communities.