Center for
Aging
in Uganda
What We Do
The Center for Aging in Uganda at Kisoro District Hospital was established in February 2024 to advocate for improvements in the health care and social welfare systems for older adults.
Our Mission
Photo Credit : Jonathan Wallen
Who We Are
The Center for Aging in Uganda advocates for improvements in the health care and social welfare systems for older adults. Meet the amazing people who help make this possible.
Our Staff
Helpful Resources
The Center for Aging in Uganda at Kisoro District Hospital serves as a resource center for other communities seeking to help older adults, by providing the training materials of The Kisoro Elders Project and consultation when requested.
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Photo Credit : Jonathan Wallen
Change is Possible
Kisoro Elders garden project helps combat food insecurity and climate change.
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Center for Aging
in UgandaThe Center for Aging in Uganda, located at Kisoro District Hospital in Kisoro, Uganda, was established in February 2024 to advocate for improvements in the health care and social welfare systems for older adults.
It stands on the shoulders of The Kisoro Elders Project, founded in 2017 by Drs. Harrison and Patricia Bloom, geriatric medicine specialists from New York, USA, in collaboration with Ugandan Project Director Moses Iraguha, Doctors for Global Health Uganda, and Kisoro District Hospital.
The goal of the Kisoro Elders Project has been to improve the health and quality of life of older adults in rural villages of Kisoro District by training Village Health Workers (VHWs), who have been delivering preventive, clinical, and educational services to younger adults and children since 2007 as part of Doctors for Global Health Uganda. VHWs were trained to conduct screening and low-cost interventions addressing common problems related to vision, hearing, mobility, pain, depression, and energy poverty.
For developing economies facing rapidly growing populations of older adults, The Kisoro Elders Project provides a model for community-based geriatric support that is low cost, provides immediate improvement in common problems of older adults, and is deliverable by non-physician providers. It can be adapted as needed to local conditions, economic realities, and available personnel capabilities.
1.5 MILLION
Population over the age of 60 in the year 2010
6 MILLION
Projected population over the age of 60 by the year 2050
The People
of UgandaThe population of older adults in Uganda, like that in all developing countries, is growing rapidly. Currently, there are 1.5 million adults above the age of 60, representing 5% of the population. That number is projected to grow to 6 million by 2050. The health care needs of older adults are not addressed by the Ugandan health care system, and any social safety net that exists is largely the responsibility of families.
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"The true measure of any society can be found in how it treats its most vulnerable members."
Our mission is to:
- Make the training materials of the Kisoro Elders Project available to any group or community interested in helping older adults. Instructions for screening and low-cost interventions performed by community health workers are available for: Vision, Hearing, Mobility and Pain, Depression, Dementia, Energy Poverty, and Planting healthy gardens. To inquire about training, consultation, or a Visiting Scholarship, Contact Us.
- Highlight the health and social welfare needs of older adults, as well as their contributions to their families, communities, and Ugandan society.
- Act as an advocacy group for improvements in the health care and social welfare systems of Uganda to benefit older adults.
Find Out About Our Program
Resources
for AfricaThe Center for Aging in Uganda at Kisoro District Hospital serves as a resource center for other communities seeking to help older adults, by providing the training materials of The Kisoro Elders Project and consultation when requested. It also acts as an advocacy group to promote the improvement of health and social services for older adults, in Uganda and elsewhere in Africa.
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Our Parent Organization: Doctors for Global Health Uganda
The Kisoro Elders Project was founded in 2017 as a new project in geriatric medicine through the NGO Doctors for Global Health (DGH) Uganda. DGH Uganda began in 2007 as a partnership with Kisoro District Hospital (KDH) providing physicians from the Albert Einstein College of Medicine (senior physicians, medical residents, and medical students) to assist in the care of patients in the hospital and outpatient clinics. In addition to partnering in the hospital, a team of 6 clinical supervisors from KDH and faculty from Albert Einstein trained Village Health Workers (VHWs) from 52 rural villages in the essentials of child wellness, women’s health, non-communicable diseases, sanitation and hygiene, acute illness, and community health. After an initial training period of 6 days/month over 1-2 years, VHWs were equipped to assess acute problems such as fever, diarrhea, and cough; monitor and dispense medication for hypertension, diabetes, and other chronic diseases; conduct prenatal and other maternal and child care; follow up hospital discharges; and educate families. VHWs receive modest stipends to supplement their income as farmers, and are supervised twice monthly by clinical personnel from KDH.
DGH Uganda provides additional innovative programs in women’s health, mental health, cardiac health, nutrition, and community health. The DGH infrastructure honed and improved over nearly 20 years provides an invaluable foundation for The Kisoro Elders Project.
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"We must find the time to stop and thank the people who make a difference in our lives."