Browsing by Author "Oboke, Henry"

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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.
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    War related sexual violence and it’s medical and psychological consequences as seen in Kitgum, Northern Uganda: A cross-sectional study
    (BMC International Health and Human Rights 2, 2010) Kinyanda, Eugene; Musisi, Seggane; Biryabarema, Christine; Ezati, Isaac; Oboke, Henry; Ochieng, Ruth Ojiambo-; Oguttu, Juliet Were; Levin, Jonathan; Grosskurth, Heiner; Walugembe, James
    Background: Despite the recent adoption of the UN resolution 1820 (2008) which calls for the cessation of war related sexual violence against civilians in conflict zones, Africa continues to see some of the worst cases of war related sexual violence including the mass sexual abuse of entire rural communities particularly in the Great Lakes region. In addition to calling for a complete halt to this abuse, there is a need for the systematic study of the reproductive, surgical and psychological effects of war related sexual violence in the African socio-cultural setting. This paper examines the specific long term health consequences of war related sexual violence among rural women living in two internally displaced person’s camps in Kitgum district in war affected Northern Uganda who accessed the services of an Isis-Women’s International Cross Cultural Exchange (Isis-WICCE) medical intervention. Methods: The study employed a purposive cross-sectional study design where 813 respondents were subjected to a structured interview as part of a screening procedure for an emergency medical intervention to identify respondents who required psychological, gynaecological and surgical treatment. Results: Over a quarter (28.6%) of the women (n = 573) reported having suffered at least one form of war related sexual violence. About three quarters of the respondents had ‘at least one gynaecological complaint’ (72.4%) and ‘at least one surgical complaint’ (75.6%), while 69.4% had significant psychological distress scores (scores greater than or equal to 6 on the WHO SRQ-20). The factors that were significantly associated with war related sexual violence were the age group of less than or equal to 44 years, being Catholic, having suffered other war related physical trauma, and having ‘at least one gynaecological complaint’. The specific gynaecological complaints significantly associated with war related sexual violence were infertility, chronic lower abdominal pain, abnormal vaginal bleeding, and sexual dysfunction. In a multivariable analysis the age group of less than or equal to 44 years, being Catholic and having ‘at least one gynaecological complaint’ remained significantly associated with war related sexual violence. Conclusion: The results from this study demonstrate that war related sexual violence is independently associated with the later development of specific gynaecological complaints.