Witch-doctor Medicine
Somewhere near the heart of the work Wellshare International is doing here in the West Nile region are the "community sensitization" activities we help our partner non-profits run at the village level. "Community sensitization," though it sounds like some kind of group anti-anesthesia, actually means "community education." In the case of malaria prevention and treatment, it means getting out into towns and villages, gathering as many people as possible together, and explaining (in a fun, edu-tainment way) how malaria works, how you prevent it, and how you properly treat it. This last week, I went to the village of Arivu, 30 minutes south of Arua, to observe a community sensitization. Along with a drumming/skit group that provides the entertainment, local Ministry of Health officials, local government figures, the indigenous partner non-profit, and a couple people from Wellshare are usually in attendance. In between some speeches by doctors and local big-wigs, which are in Lugbara rather than English (so I can't speak to their content or quality), the real fun revolves around drums, singing, and hilarious skits that make fun of witch-doctors. See below:
Among the many challenges non-profits face when trying to educate the Ugandan public about malaria (or any public health issue), is the prevalence and trust in witch-doctors to provide rural villagers with "medicine." Drama groups turn witch-doctors into laughable and captivating material - the children and mothers howl and run closer when the witch-doctor in rags and a mask comes forward to try to cure the malaria patient (in the skit). So for all of you readers in America, my message to you is this: Don't trust witch-doctors to cure your malaria.