Uganda Adds 14 Field Epidemiologists to Its Disease Surveillance Team

Uganda has added 14 new field epidemiologists to its ranks, bringing the total number of disease surveillance and detection experts in the country to 93. At the graduation ceremony, concerns were raised about the shortage of such experts in Africa, with some countries operating with only two or three epidemiologists. This shortage hinders the detection and intervention in disease outbreaks.

Dr. Yonas Tegegn Woldermariam highlighted that Africa records at least two new outbreaks per week, and the rate at which these are detected affects the eventual spending on countering them. Uganda, with its cadre of field epidemiologists, has been able to swiftly end epidemics due to their quick deployment when alerts are received.

The training program, known as the Uganda Public Health Fellowship Program (PHFP), adopts an events-based surveillance approach. It receives various alerts, quickly analyzes them for the source of the outbreak and transmission patterns, and then deploys swiftly to stop further transmission.

However, concerns have been raised about the sustainability of the program, as it is donor-funded by the American government. The hope was that the Ugandan government would start contributing to the funding of the training. While the program is considered valuable, the worry is that its reliance on external funding may affect its continuity.

Dr. Daniel Kyabayinze, the Director of Public Health in the Ministry of Health, assured that the program could sustain itself, even if the US government pulled out. He emphasized the high demand for field epidemiologists, and any grants written in this field would likely find funding.

The demand for field epidemiologists is expected to continue rising, especially with new diseases emerging due to climate change.