Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | Mulago National Referral Hospital held a prayer event where health workers were urged to cast their burdens before the Lord in face of work related anxieties which are pushing some into mental distress. At the event held on Tuesday recognise the work of female health workers …
Read More »Mind and medicine
How Uganda’s group support psychotherapy is reshaping mental‑health care for people living with HIV ANALYSIS | PATRICIA AKANKWATSA | When Dr Etheldreda Nakimuli-Mpungu speaks about depression and HIV, she does so with the measured tone of a researcher — but also with the urgency of someone who has witnessed the …
Read More »Mental Health crisis casts shadow over Uganda’s economy
Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | Uganda’s ambition to grow its economy tenfold by 2040 is facing an unexpected threat: a fast-rising mental health crisis driven by rapid population growth, youth unemployment, and mounting social pressures. At the launch of the State of Uganda Population Report 2025 (SUPRE 2025) at …
Read More »Humanizing HIV, TB amongst psychiatric patients
SPECIAL FEATURE | OWEN NYAKA | Titus Virinyu was diagnosed HIV+, and health experts recommended him to take anti-retrovirals (ARVs) for life on a daily basis to prolong his life. Virinyu (pseudonym), who also has a mental problem, does not take the medication as per the doctors’ prescription. Sometimes he does …
Read More »When Students Fake Sickness: The silent cry schools and parents keep missing
COMMENT | CONSTANCE KICONCO | From the Student: “I keep things to myself. My friend was struggling with school pressure. He told the school counsellor that he felt like ending his life because no one seemed to understand him. Instead of helping, the counsellor reported him to the administrators. He was called out …
Read More »MENTAL HEALTH: The need for counselors in schools
COMMENT | Saddam Ngambirwoha | In a heart-wrenching incident that has left the whole country in mourning, a Senior Three student in one of the secondary schools in Wakiso is reported to have tragically taken his own life. The young boy, whose identity we withhold out of respect for …
Read More »China attaches greater importance to minors’ mental health:
BEIJING | Xinhua | China has attached increasing importance to the mental health of children and adolescents, experts said at a press conference held by the National Health Commission (NHC) on Wednesday. Epidemiological survey results from authoritative institutions show that the actual prevalence of depression among adolescents in China is …
Read More »Beauty Queens prioritize tackling mental health crisis in northern Uganda
Gulu, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | The newly crowned Queens representing the face of Gulu City have prioritized tackling the mental health crisis affecting the productivity of the youth in Northern Uganda. The night of December 20, 2024, ushered in three top finalists who competed in the beauty pageant at …
Read More »Illuminating Hope: Our collective journey towards mental wellness
A recent report indicates that 30% of Ugandans suffer from some degree of mental illness COMMENT | FLAVIA LWANGA | As we observe World Suicide Prevention Day, I find myself reflecting on the profound responsibility we hold as leaders, colleagues, and fellow human beings. In my role as the Human Resource …
Read More »Experts ask why authorities have failed to investigate psychological torture
Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | Experts have expressed concern that authorities in Uganda cannot ably investigate and document cases of psychological torture. Alex Kigoye, the head of Programs at the African Center for Treatment and Rehabilitation of Torture Victims (ACTV) says that it is worrying that even when cases …
Read More »
The Independent Uganda: You get the Truth we Pay the Price