Mental Health

Background
The mental health department of Kagando hospital was established in 2003
This started basically under the Out-patient Department with the main objective of providing the much required consultation liaison psychiatry services alongside the Medical team who identify the cases and refer for further assessment and comprehensive management by the Psychiatric team including other curative and rehabilitative services.

We get support from UK based organization called Jamie’s fund which support mental in church founded hospital in Uganda. They support us in terms of drugs financial and material things which enable us to run the department.

The department started with a Psychiatric Nurse, a visiting Psychiatrist from the UK offering outpatient consultation clinics on Tuesday and it still stands

Activities

  1. Assessment of patients identified for psychiatric reviews from Out- patients Department and the Wards
  2. Psychotherapy and Psycho education
  3. Clinical management of the diagnosed mental and psychosocial disorders including admission of acute cased on the ward for close monitoring
  4. Conducting sensitization and community awareness programs
  5. Conducting continued medical education services for the in-service medical staff
  6. Follow up and psychosocial rehabilitative services for patients who have improved on medication
  7. Planning, administration and record keeping at the department level

Working days
The clinic runs on Tuesday from morning but the department remains open Monday to Friday from 8:00am to 4:00pm for assessment of both out and in-patients except for public holidays

Achievements
Increased awareness on the presence of the mental health services in the hospital both by the hospital staff and members of the general public.

Provision of specialized psychological management of the common mental disorders such as anxiety, depression and dementia among others

We conduct continuous medical education sessions and mental health camps for the benefit of the general publican and out of the hospital.

We now receive a number of intern students of psychiatric nursing from school of psychiatric clinical school and nursing school whom we have supported and supervised under the directive of the hospital management.

The patient turn up has significantly increased following the improvement of awareness on the availability of specialized services in the hospital.

We now have a psychiatric Nurse, Psychiatric Clinical Officer and a visiting Psychiatrist from the UK and therefore now need only a clinical psychologist for the department to be fully constituted for clinical management.