The Uganda Public Health Fellowship Program (PHFP) enrolled 10 Fellows under the Field Epidemiology Track (FET) in 2015. In the course of their two years, Fellows conducted over 40 outbreak investigations on diseases of public health importance; thereby contributing to their effective management and control. Fellows also analyzed public health surveillance data and conducted evaluation of public health surveillance systems with the aim of improving detection of disease epidemic alerts and prompting early response. Over their two years, Fellows presented 66 papers at national and international conferences; two of them received awards for outstanding presentation. In May 2016, Dr Christine Kihembo. (Cohort 2015) received the 2016 Jeffrey P. Koplan Award for Excellence in Public Health at the 65th Epidemic Intelligence Service Conference in Atlanta, Georgia, for her poster presentation entitled,
“Risk factors for Podoconiosis in Kamwenge District, Western Uganda, 2015”. In August 2016, Dr Fred Nsubuga (Cohort 2015) won an award (2nd Runner-up in the Best Oral Presentations Category) at the 6th AFENET Conference in Abuja, Nigeria, for his presentation entitled, “Measles transmission facilitated by exposure at crowded healthcare facilities, low vaccine effectiveness and failure to vaccinate in Kamwenge District, Western Uganda, April to August, 2015”. Fellows made significant appearances in the local media, contributing feature articles on key topics of public health importance. In another very important stride, the Public Health Fellowship Program rejuvenated the Ministry of Health Bulletin code-named the Uganda National Institute of Public Health Quarterly Epidemiological Bulletin where Fellows have participated very effectively as editors and article contributors. Four volumes were produced since the Quarterly bulletin was rejuvenated over their 2 years. Fellows submitted sixteen manuscripts to reputable peer-reviewed journals. This report presents the profiles of Cohort 2015 Fellows and their achievements over the two-year period of training. Enjoy your reading!
