Lira University (LU) is a university in Uganda. It is one of the eleven public universities and degree-awarding institutions in the country.
Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) constitutes a significant public health concern, particularly in low-resource settings, and has been correlated with diminished utilization of antenatal care (ANC) services. Despite the implementation of various interventions in Uganda, IPV remains prevalent, particularly in the suburban regions of Kampala. We examined the association between IPV and ANC utilization among women in the suburbs of Kampala, Uganda. A cross-sectional study was conducted involving 398 women aged 15 to 49 who had given birth within the past 12 months and resided in the suburbs of Kampala between September 2024 and May 2025. Data were collected using a pre-tested questionnaire comprising three sub-sections: socio-demographic characteristics, IPV, and utilization of ANC services. IPV was evaluated utilizing the Revised Conflict Tactics Scale 2 (RCTS2). Data analyses included descriptive statistics and Poisson regression to assess associations. The threshold for statistical significance was set at p < 0.05. The majority of participants were aged 25–34 years (49.7
Developing reliable pseudopotentials for orbital-free density functional theory (OF-DFT), especially for transition metals, remains a significant challenge. In this study, we provide a theoretical framework for analyzing pseudization strategies for OF-DFT calculations. From the analysis arises a proposed pseudization method which involves constructing local pseudopotentials by targeting existing Kohn-Sham DFT pseudopotentials through an optimized effective potential procedure. We produce four distinct sets of local pseudopotentials and evaluate their accuracy and transferability on the set of transition metal elements. Our results indicate a substantial improvement over previously available pseudopotentials. Although current OF-DFT functionals still only reach a qualitative accuracy for transition metals, our newly developed pseudopotentials provide a rigorous framework for further methodological advancements.
Low-income settings such as Uganda bear a disproportionately high burden of diseases such as HIV/AIDS, but contribute little to knowledge production to address their health challenges. The training of health professionals traditionally focuses on clinical skills with less emphasis on research; yet, in practice, health professionals are expected to do operational research. In this study, we evaluate the impact of a micro-research model on building the capacity of undergraduate health professions students to conduct locally relevant biomedical, behavioral, clinical, and operations research on HIV and its co-morbidities. This study was within the Health Professional Education Partnership Initiative - Transforming Ugandan Institutions Training Against HIV/AIDS (HEPI-TUITAH; 2018–2024), using a sequential explanatory mixed methods design. We collected quantitative data on sociodemographic, number of trainings, concepts and written manuscripts. Thereafter, we conducted in-depth interviews and analyzed them using a thematic content approach. We used the RE-AIM (reach, effectiveness, adoption, implementation, and maintenance) framework to evaluate the impact (number trainings, protocols written, manuscripts written, publications, and change in attitudes) of the HEPI-TUITAH micro-research model. Of the 24 participants that were interviewed, 15 (62.5
Exposure to organochlorine pesticides (OCPs) remains a major public health concern in low-income countries, where historical usage and poor regulation continue to result in maternal and early-life exposures. This study assessed concentration profiles of selected OCPs, namely; p,p '-DDT, p,p '-DDE, o,p '-DDE, p,p '-DDD, o,p '-DDD, aldrin, dieldrin, lindane, alpha-endosulfan, beta-endosulfan, and endosulfan-sulfate in maternal blood, breast milk, and placenta samples collected from 52 healthy mothers residing in the rural Kanungu District and urban Kampala District in Uganda. Analytical quantification was performed using gas chromatography-electron capture detection (GC-ECD), and compound identity was confirmed by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). Concentrations of total DDTs (& sum;DDTs) were 63.0, 27.1, and 35.0 ng g(-1) lipid weight (l.w) in blood, breast milk, and placenta, respectively. o,p '-DDE was the predominant metabolite in blood (67% of & sum;DDTs), while p,p '-DDE dominated in placenta and milk (34% and 70%, respectively), possibly due to degradation of technical DDT applied in past decades. Other OCPs were generally low (
