When Majaiti Erukana, 39, walked past Sidani Church of Uganda that morning, he never expected to find a lifeline waiting for him.

A mobile clinic something he had once heard about from a village health team but long forgotten was right there, set up and buzzing with activity. For the Nagwere resident, it felt like a stroke of luck at just the right time.

Organized by the Uganda Youth and Adolescents Health Forum (UYAHF) under the German Doctors funded Inclusive and Equitable Health Care Services (IEHS) project, the mobile clinic is held quarterly to reach under served communities with essential medical services.

“Today, I’m so excited,” he said. “While returning from the market, I noticed the tents and came closer to see what was happening. When the nurses explained that they were treating patients, I didn’t hesitate. I joined immediately.”

For the past five months, Majaiti has suffered and endured severe pain in his hip, back, and lower abdomen, along with constant headaches. During the clinic visit, his blood pressure was checked and found to be dangerously high.

“I rarely go to health facilities,” he admitted. “And even when we want to go, we often don’t have money for medication. That’s when conditions get worse. I’m grateful that they discovered the high blood pressure in time and gave me medicine.”

Majaiti was also screened for a urinary tract infection (UTI), but the doctor advised that he return with his wife for further tests.

“It hurts me that she won’t receive treatment now,” he said. “The journey is long, and I wish they could give us medicine for both of us. But I understand they need to check her first.” Despite the challenges, Majaiti’s voice is filled with hope.

“I am so happy and grateful to the German doctors who brought this clinic to our village. It would have been difficult for us to reach a health facility. This is a great opportunity for people like us. Your service means everything to us and now, we have hope for a better, healthier life.”

The story of 21-year-old Tigulawo Zaina from Sidani village speaks volumes about the urgent need for health education and accessible reproductive health services in rural Uganda. Like many young women, Zaina faced challenges that left her vulnerable, uninformed, and overwhelmed by motherhood at a tender age.

At just 21 years old, Tigulawo Zaina of Sidani village is already a mother of four. Her life is a portrait of resilience, painted with the challenges of early motherhood, poverty, and limited access to reproductive health services.

Zaina first became pregnant at 14 a childhood cut short by responsibilities far beyond her years. Now, two of her children are battling malnutrition, a direct consequence of un spaced pregnancies and lack of sufficient food.

“I didn’t plan to have children this way,” she shares in a low tone. “But I didn’t get the chance to grow before I had to raise someone else.”

After the birth of her first child, Zaina tried to take charge of her reproductive health and sought out family planning. However, complications followed. “I used to have constant back pain, weight loss, and severe headaches,” she recalls. “Everyone in the village was advising me to stop. I went back to the health facility and they removed the implants.”

Her story mirrors that of many young mothers across the region, where myths, health side effects, and lack of spousal support create major barriers to family planning. “I wanted to give my children a better life,” Zaina says, “but I didn’t know where to turn for help after I got sick.”

Without supportive systems both at home and within health services young women like Zaina are left to face impossible choices alone. Her voice is a plea, not only for food and medical care, but for a society that empowers women with education, support, and choices.

After experiencing health complications with family planning, Zaina discontinued her contraceptive method without fully understanding the cause of her symptoms. “I think I was impatient. I listened to people’s misconceptions and rushed to remove the implants,” she admits. “But I’m grateful that during my antenatal visits, the health workers encouraged me to breastfeed my baby. That support gave me hope again.”

Her third child, three-year-old Kisoferi Yona, has been suffering from malaria and chronic otitis media since January 2025. With no money and no effective help from the already distant government health facility, Zaina resorted to using local herbs but Yona’s condition worsened. “He stopped eating. I was deeply troubled and didn’t know what to do,” she shared, burdened by the added responsibility of caring for a four-month-old infant and two other children.

Living far from any health center, Zaina faced the heartbreaking task of carrying two children on long journeys in search of treatment. But hope arrived through our integrated health community outreaches under the Inclusive and Equitable Health Services (IEHS) project supported by German Doctors.

“The team helped me with malaria treatment, medicine for his ear infection, and a referral to receive food rations from the health facility,” Zaina explains. “My child used not to sleep well at night, and that weighed heavily on me. But now, I’m happy he’s finally getting better.”

Her story is a powerful reminder of the impact that community-based health interventions can have especially when they go beyond treatment and offer education, empathy, and empowerment.

Without proper information, Zaina’s early decisions were driven by fear and misinformation. Her journey underscores the urgent need to strengthen health education programs, especially for young women in underserved communities, so they can make informed choices about their bodies and families.

Zaina’s voice is one of hundreds being heard through the IEHS project intervention, not only healing bodies, but restoring dignity and hope to families who need it most.

The grassroots communities in Kokutu village paint a vivid picture of everyday life for the ordinary Ugandan. Like many rural areas, poverty remains a major barrier to accessing quality healthcare. In these peripheral regions, limited access to health services and the prevalence of various health conditions have sadly become the norm.

As you drive through the villages, it’s a common sight to see residents walking long distances to reach their daily destinations either gardens, schools, or health facilities. A bicycle is considered a privilege by many, often being the only means of transport available. The hope of catching a ride in a passing vehicle is ever-present, but rarely fulfilled. This challenge doesn’t only affect local residents, it also impacts health workers who provide essential services at the grassroots level. The lack of reliable transportation significantly delays service delivery at local health facilities. Health workers often walk long distances to reach these facilities, and the same transportation barriers hinder the effectiveness and consistency of community outreach activities despite the health workers resilience and willingness.

One of the health workers, Magdalene Achom, shares her experience: “My home is very far from the health facility, and the outreach location is even further. I end up arriving late because there’s no reliable means of transport and even taking a boda boda takes a long time and is costly”, Achom mentioned.

However, the integrated community outreaches supported by the German doctors funded Inclusive and Equitable health Care Services(IEHS) project have implicitly strengthened healthcare delivery by increasing access to treatment for various illnesses and improving vaccination coverage. Through these outreaches, many individuals who would otherwise be unable to reach health facilities due to distance or financial constraints are now receiving timely medical care. Moreover, routine immunizations, especially for children, are realizing a noticeable rise in uptake, helping to prevent outbreaks of vaccine-preventable diseases like measles and tetanus, Chicken pox among others.

Additionally, Akello Jane, a nurse at Akuor Health Center III, shared her experience:
“I’ve noticed a huge change in attitude among parents during these community outreaches, they’re much more excited to vaccinate their children than during home and facility visits and even adults who missed tetanus shots at the facility came forward during the outreach”, Jane mentioned. She continued to say that although most community members are farmers who often work without gumboots leading to frequent injuries, they cannot afford proper treatment. The tetanus vaccination program has always been in place, but turnout was low, however, during the Kokutu village outreach, people were eager to receive the shots and many much more health care services.

“It is such a joy for me as a health worker to serve my community closer to home, many patients complain about the long distance to health facilities which limits their access to care”, Jane added. These challenges are gradually becoming a thing of the past thanks to the continued medical support from the Inclusive and Equitable Health care services project implemented by UYAHF in collaboration with the ministry of health and with support from the German Doctors through integrated community outreaches.

“While many women attend antenatal care, access to scan services remains a struggle”, Magi Winnie, a 19-year-old expectant mother, expressed her gratitude after receiving free medical care during the Kokutu outreach in Bukedea District.

“I’m so happy to be treated today, I didn’t even know I had malaria until I came for the scan, the midwife advised that I go test for malaria after my scan session and for sure the lab test confirmed that I had Malaria +2 with fever and was given medication”, Winnie excitedly mentioned.

Despite these limitations, Village Health Teams (VHTs) appreciate the collaboration between the Ministry of health and the Inclusive and Equitable Healthcare services (IEHS) Project. They recognize their combined efforts are making a real difference in improving health outcomes. The VHTs recommend increasing the number of outreach days and frequency to ensure continued and expanded access to this vital service.

“The stigma and harsh treatment I faced from health workers during my first pregnancy made me give birth to my second child at home. I never thought I would ever set foot in a health facility again, but now, I feel there’s hope ” Says Hatono Catherine, a 19-year-old mother of two from Busaba sub-county, Butaleja District.”

In September 2024, UYAHF under the CEHURD-funded Youth Champions Challenging SRH stigma project conducted a two-day transformative capacity-building session for youth champions, health workers, CBOs, and district officials in Butaleja District aimed at strengthening advocacy power to build local movements and initiatives at the community level to address the persistent SRH challenges facing young people in the district. This intensive training equipped the participants with skills in SMART Advocacy, Gender Transformative Approaches (GTA), and Meaningful and Inclusive Youth Participation (MIYP). The impact of the training has been profound, not just for the CBO, but also for the young people in the community.

According to Grace, before the training, the team at ALBO struggled with work plans and a limited strategic direction. “As CBOs especially in upcountry and many can attest to this we struggle so much in strategic programming. Speaking for ALBO, we didn’t know how to break down our big goals into actionable steps. But through the SMART advocacy training, the team learned how to set actionable and measurable goals. Grace affirmed, adding “Now, we create

Nabwire (Not their real name), a vibrant 16-year-old girl from Busolwe sub-county, Butaleja district, lived with a heavy and life-threatening secret for over two months. As a primary six pupil with limited access to Sexual and Reproductive Health (SRH) information, faced the unimaginable challenge of teenage pregnancy. Overwhelmed by fear, the desire to continue pursuing her education, and societal stigma, she attempted an unsafe abortion that left her with complications including a perforating uterus. Too scared to speak out, she endured the pain in silence, unsure where to turn for help.

In the heart of Namboole village, Nakwasi Parish, Butaleja District, Kintu Peter’s story is one of determination, change, strength, and the power of community-based approaches in challenging Sexual Reproductive Health (SRH) challenges. At just 18 years old, Peter is redefining the health narrative of young people in his community. This is all attributed to his involvement in the Youth Champions Challenging Sexual Reproductive Health Stigma (YCCSRHS) project that is implemented in Butaleja, funded by CEHURD and implemented by the Uganda Youth and Adolescents Health Forum (UYAHF).