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Mental healthcare in Uganda: desperate challenges but real opportunities

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  02 January 2018

Andrew Molodynski ,
Christina Cusack  and
Jurua Nixon
Andrew Molodynski
Affiliation:
World Association of Social Psychiatry Working Group on Coercion; Department of Psychiatry, Oxford University, UK; Oxford Health NHS Foundation Trust, Oxford University, UK, email andrew.molodynski@oxfordhealth.nhs.uk
Christina Cusack
Affiliation:
Oxford Health NHS Foundation Trust, UK
Jurua Nixon
Affiliation:
Hear International, Arua, Uganda
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Abstract

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Recent reports have highlighted human rights concerns in Ugandan mental healthcare. This article describes the current situation in terms of healthcare funding and provision, concerns regarding legislation, and health inequalities. Possible reasons for the difficult situation are briefly discussed, including the economy, pervasive stigma and ongoing unrest in the region. We then describe some encouraging initiatives in Uganda that are empowering those with mental health problems to have a better quality of life and identify opportunities for change.

Type
Psychiatry Under Restrictive Conditions
Information
BJPsych International , Volume 14 , Issue 4 , November 2017 , pp. 98 - 100
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Creative Commons
Creative Common License - CCCreative Common License - BYCreative Common License - NCCreative Common License - ND
This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives licence (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/), which permits noncommercial re-use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is unaltered and is properly cited. The written permission of Cambridge University Press must be obtained for commercial re-use or in order to create a derivative work.
Copyright
Copyright © Royal College of Psychiatrists, 2017

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