The revised BFHI Guidance for Operationalising of the MIYCAN Guidelines is aligned to the global BFHI Implementation Guidance published in 2018 and contributes towards the attainment of the national and global nutrition targets. It is intended to provide the basis for the different stakeholders at national, regional, district, and sub-district levels to plan, implement and monitor interventions for protecting, promoting, and supporting breastfeeding.
The Nutrition Service Quality Assessment (NSQA 2021) Tool for health facilities is a result of
the revision and expansion of the Nutrition Service Delivery Assessment tool (NSDA 2015) into a
systems quality assessment tool for nutrition services at all health facility levels. The NSQA tool is specifically designed for both self-assessment (internally) and external assessment of the status and quality of nutrition services. It helps to monitor implementation and generate evidence to inform decisions related to planning for improving nutrition service quality within the health system. This assessment is to generate reliable information on the status and functioning of the health facility in providing nutrition care and support services.
The Government of Uganda has prioritized the nutrition of mothers, infants, young children and adolescents as reflected in the Maternal, Infant, young Child and Adolescent Nutrition (MIYCAN) Guidelines, 2021 and MIYCAN Action Plans, 2021-2025. Implementation of the Guidelines and Action Plans requires that key players have the correct knowledge, skills, and approaches to improve the nutrition of infants, young children, adolescents, and women of reproductive age including pregnant and lactating women.
The Ministry of Health and development partners have provided targeted nutrition interventions to selected districts and health facilities using the Nutrition Assessment, Counselling, and Support (NACS) approach in services for people living with HIV (PLHIV). The approach strengthens the capacity of the facility and community-based healthcare providers to deliver nutrition-specific services while linking clients to nutrition-sensitive interventions provided by the health, agriculture, food security, social protection, education, and rural development sectors.
The Health Facility training package aims to build the capacity of district level health managers and health facility service providers to counsel women, adolescents, and caregivers of children under-5 on appropriate maternal, infant, and young child and adolescent nutrition practices. This Health Facility Facilitators’ Manual in conjunction with the corresponding Participants’ Manual and accompanying IEC materials will go a long way to meet the training needs in this area.
The MIYCAN Counselling Cards are part of the Ministry of Health's strategy to improve maternal, infant, young child, and adolescent health and nutrition. These materials are part of an integrated package of job aids, or counselling tools, aimed at supporting health workers in counselling mothers and other caregivers of children from birth to 24 months of age. The content of these materials is guided by the updated Uganda Maternal, Infant, Young Child, and Adolescent Nutrition Guidelines (November 2020).
The Ministry of Health and development partners have provided targeted nutrition interventions to selected districts and health facilities using the nutrition assessment, counselling, and support (NACS) approach in services for people living with HIV (PLHIV). The NACS approach strengthens the broader health system by improving technical capacity that can be applied to other nutrition interventions, identifying referral pathways, establishing protocols for supervision and commodity management, improving client flow within health services, and improving data management.
Sick Child Job Aid is a useful guide that enables the health worker to gather information about the sick child both at the health facility and while in the community.
Integrated community case management (iCCM) is part of a wider community health worker (CHW) strategy, in which CHWs provide lifesaving treatment for childhood killer diseases within 24 hours of the onset of symptoms. Trained CHWs are supported, equipped, and supplied with commodities to provide Curative services and Health promotion services within the community.
Nationally, about 5 million cases of malaria, diarrhoea, and pneumonia annually are brought to care late or go untreated; hence, integrated Community Case Management (iCCM) addresses an unmet need. The iCCM strategy accelerates the reduction in childhood mortality, which is still soaring high in Uganda.
This newsletter has been developed to update the public about the new developments in the fight against malaria in the country. In this newsletter, we provide a highlight of a number of activities conducted in the last three months of the quarter. Editor in chief: Rukia Nakamatte
This technical guideline is an important document that guides the implementation of PrEP as an HIV prevention option in Uganda. The purpose of the guidelines is to provide a framework for health service providers to deliver quality PrEP services at all levels of the health system.
