Background Intimate partner violence (IPV) is an important public health issue as it impacts negatively on health, economic and development outcomes. In conflict affected northern Uganda, IPV prevalence is high and additional context-specific risk factors exist. People residing in this region have been displaced, exposed to war and violence, and had livelihoods destroyed. There are few studies examining IPV in this setting. In this study we aim to further understand the prevalence of IPV towards women and its associations in conflict affected northern Uganda. Methods This was a cross-sectional, behavioural survey designed to capture quantitative information related to experiences of IPV among women living near two health clinics in rural northern Uganda. There were 409 women who participated in the survey. Data were analysed using logistic regression. Results High rates of emotional, physical and sexual IPV were found; 78.5% of women had experienced at least one type of IPV, and slightly more than half of the participants had experienced IPV in the 12 months prior to the survey. Many women felt that IPV was justified in certain situations. Significant determinants of IPV included alcohol abuse by the male partner (OR 2.22, 95% CI 1.34–3.73); partner having been in a physical fight with another man (OR 1.90, 95% CI 1.12–3.23); controlling behaviours by the male partner (OR 1.21, CI 1.08–1.36). and younger age of the woman (OR 0.95, 95% CI 0.92–0.98). Educational level was not independently associated with IPV. Conclusions Our findings show that IPV is a significant issue in conflict affected northern Uganda, and attitudes that normalise and justify IPV are common. Alcohol abuse among young men in northern Uganda is highly prevalent and strongly associated with IPV towards women, as are controlling behaviours exhibited by the male partner. Interventions to reduce alcohol consumption among men in this region are likely to have important benefits in reducing the prevalence of IPV, and attitudes and behaviours that support IPV need to be further understood and addressed. Many women in conflict affected northern Uganda likely have additional risk factors for IPV related to previous exposure to war violence, however this was not directly measured in the present study. Further research into IPV in northern Uganda, and its relationship to exposure to conflict, is greatly needed.

BackgroundIt has been realised that there is need to have medical training closer to communities where the majority of the population lives in order to orient the trainees’ attitudes towards future practice in such communities. Although community based education (CBE) has increasingly been integrated into health professions curricula since the 1990s, the contribution students make to service delivery during CBE remains largely undocumented. In this study, we examined undergraduate health professions students’ contribution to primary health care during their CBE placements.MethodsThis was a qualitative study involving the Medical Education for Equitable Services to All Ugandans consortium (MESAU). Overall, we conducted 36 Focus Group Discussions (FGDs): one each with youth, men and women at each of 12 CBE sites. Additionally, we interviewed 64 community key-informants. All data were audio-recorded, transcribed and analysed using qualitative data analysis software Atlas.ti Ver7.ResultsTwo themes emerged: students’ contribution at health facility level and students’ contribution at community level. Under theme one, we established that students were not only learning; they also contributed to delivery of health services at the facilities. Their contribution was highly appreciated especially by community members. Students were described as caring and compassionate, available on time and anytime, and as participating in patient care. They were willing to share their knowledge and skills, and stimulated discussion on work ethics. Under the second theme, students were reported to have participated in water, sanitation, and hygiene education in the community. Students contributed to maintenance of safe water sources, educated communities on drinking safe water and on good sanitation practices (hand washing and proper waste disposal). Hygiene promotion was done at household level (food hygiene, hand washing, cleanliness) and to the public. Public health education was extended to institutions. School pupils were sensitised on various health-related issues including sexuality and sexual health.ConclusionHealth professions students at the MESAU institutions contribute meaningfully to primary health care delivery. We recommend CBE to all health training programs in sub-Saharan Africa.

Background Risk factors for oral disease can potentially be ameliorated by school-based interventions. This review evaluates the effectiveness of primary school-based interventions in improving oral health among children in low-and middle-income countries (LMICs). Methods Our systematic review was conducted in accordance with the Joanna Briggs Institute methodology for systematic reviews of effectiveness. Medline, Embase, Global Health, CINAHL, Emcare, Scopus, Web of Science, WHO website, Google Advanced and Google Scholar were searched for experimental and observational studies published between 1995 and 2021 in English. Quality assessment and data extraction of the articles were performed by two independent reviewers. The primary outcome was decayed, missing, and filled teeth/surfaces [dmft(s)/DMFT(S)] scores. Seven meta-analyses were conducted. Results The search yielded 1178 publications and after removing duplicates, 753 remained. A further 648 publications were excluded after screening titles and abstracts. 105 publications were reviewed in full and 34 were included. Narrative synthesis showed school-based interventions had a positive effect on oral health outcomes. Meta-analysis showed a significant positive effect on dental caries measured by DMFT scores (standardised mean difference (SMD) =  − 0.33; 95% CI − 0.56 to − 0.10; P = 0.005), net increment in DMFS scores (SMD =  − 1.09; 95% CI − 1.91 to − 0.27; P = 0.009), dmft and DMFT/S score > 1 (Risk Ratio = 0.70; 95% CI 0.53 to 0.94; P = 0.02) and plaque scores (SMD =  − 0.32; 95% CI − 0.46 to − 0.18; P < 0.00001). Non-significant positive effect was observed for dental caries measured by net increment in DMFT scores (SMD =  − 0.34; 95% CI − 0.69 to 0.02; P = 0.06) and DMFS scores (SMD =  − 0.26; 95% CI − 0.70 to 0.18; P = 0.24), and gingival health (SMD = 0.12; 95% CI − 0.32 to 0.55; P = 0.60). Certainty of evidence was assessed as very low for all oral health outcomes. Conclusion School-based interventions can be effective in reducing the burden of oral disease among primary school children in LMICs, with skills-based education, teacher training, provision of access to oral health services and parental engagement emerging as particularly promising. Further research is required to provide evidence of effectiveness of primary school-based interventions to improve oral health. Systematic review registration The title of this review was registered with PROSPERO (registration number: CRD42020202599).

BackgroundThe use of prescription medications without the involvement of medical professionals is a growing public health concern. Therefore this study was conducted to determine the prevalence of borrowing and sharing prescription medicines and associated socio-demographic factors among community members who had sought health care from COBERS health centres.MethodsWe conducted analytical cross – sectional study among former patients who sought treatment during the two months period prior to data collection in nine COBERS health centres. We used cluster proportional-to-size sampling method to get the numbers of research participants to be selected for interview from each COBERS site and logistic regression model was used to assess the associations.ResultsThe prevalence of borrowing prescription medication was found to be 35.9% (95% CI 33.5–38.2%) and sharing prescription medication was 32.7% (95% CI 30.4–34.9%). The Socio-demographic factors associated with borrowing prescription medicines were: age group ≤19 years (AOR = 2.64, 95%CI 1.47–4.74, p-value = 0.001); age group 20–29 years (AOR = 2.78, 95%CI 1.71–4.50, p-value≤0.001); age group 30–39 years (AOR = 1.90, 95%CI 1.18–3.06, p-value = 0.009); age group 40–49 (AOR = 1.83, 95%CI 1.15–2.92, p-value = 0.011); being a female (AOR = 2.01, 1.58–2.55, p-value< 0.001); being a Pentecostal by faith (AOR = 1.69, 95%CI 1.02–2.81, p-value = 0.042) and being Employed Salary Earner (AOR = 0.44, 95%CI 0.25–0.78, p-value = 0.005). The socio-demographic factors associated with sharing prescription medicines were: age group ≥19 years (AOR = 4.17, 95%CI 2.24–7.76, p-value< 0.001); age group 20–29 years (AOR = 3.91, 95%CI 2.46–6.29, p-value< 0.001); age group 30–39 years (AOR = 2.94, 95%CI 2.05–4.21, p-value< 0.001); age group 40–49 years (AOR = 2.22, 95%CI 1.29–3.82, p-value = 0.004); being female (AOR = 2.50, 95%CI 1.70–3.47, p-value< 0.001); being Pentecostal by faith (AOR = 2.15, 95%CI 1.15–4.03, p-value = 0.017); and being engaged in business (AOR = 1.80, 95%CI 1.16–2.80, p-value = 0.009).ConclusionA high proportion of study participants had borrowed or shared prescription medicines during the two months prior to our study. It is recommended that stakeholders sensitise the community members on the danger of borrowing and sharing prescription medicines to avert the practice.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (10.1186/s40360-018-0206-5) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.