Title:
Access to Care for Survivors of Gender Based Violence in Uganda: A Literature Review
Authors:
Holeckova, Katerina
Place:
Amsterdam, The Netherlands
Publisher:
KIT - Royal Tropical Institute [etc.]
Year:
2022
PAGE:
48
Language:
En
Subject:
Health and Poverty
Keywords:
Gender Based Violence, Sexual Violence, Access to Care, Uganda, Survivor, Healthcare
Abstract:
Background: Globally, gender-based violence (GBV) is one of the most ancient and widespread human rights violations, currently affecting one in three women in their lifetime. That translates to about worldwide 35% of women who experience intimate partner violence (IPV) and 7% of women who experienced sexual violence (SV) by a non-intimate partner during their life. In Uganda, the incidence of GBV is well above the global average with 56% of women experiencing IPV caused by their spouse, and 22% of them experiencing SV. The government of Uganda had made effort to address GBV in the country through national policies and guidelines. Despite their efforts the implementation part of the national guidelines and policies remained weak. Limited access to health care and a lack of awareness of GBV are two general factors contributing to ongoing violence in the community. Therefore, it is important to understand what the barriers are to access care following an experience of violence in Uganda. Also, it is necessary to identify what the level of awareness of GBV is among the Ugandan population. Objective: To describe the problems with access to medical care and barriers related to GBV in Uganda. And what evidence has been shown to be effective, using country with similar context as illustrative examples. Methodology: Based on the conceptual framework of access to healthcare for GBV survivors developed by Levesque et al., a literature review has been conducted using different database sources, including PubMed, Cochrane, Google Scholar, science databases, and relevant organizations' websites. Findings: There are supply and demand-side factors that influence access to GBV care in Uganda. On the supply-side there is a lack of information to people about available GBV services. Further maldistribution of available GBV services, shortage of medical health workers in the health facilities, limited funding that are available for the GBV medical services, cultural norms and accepted practices, and a lack of community support to the survivors to seek GBV medical care. The demand-side factors comprise individuals’ insufficient knowledge about the importance of the services. Furthermore, the long waiting hours and establishment of privacy at the SV clinics limits individuals to seek medical care after rape. Also, the ability to pay for GBV medical services for survivors. The various dimensions of access that have been identified are interdependent, and they often have an impact on each other at different times and stages when needed by the survivors. In order to improve access to care and services for GBV survivors, there is a need to conduct more in-depth research that explores community and health-care barriers to accessing GBV medical care in Uganda. Additionally, the Ministry of Health and stakeholders involved in the GBV medical care in Uganda may benefit from lessons learned from countries such as Zambia, Kenya, and The Republic of South Africa where GBV was eliminated. These include establishing SV clinics, ensuring privacy, and serving all medical needs of a patient through a good referral network if needed, improving support from the community, and raising general awareness of GBV.
Organization:
KIT - Royal Tropical Institute , VU - Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam
Institute:
KIT (Royal Tropical Institute)
Country:
Czech Republic
Region:
Central Europe
Training:
Master of International Health
Category:
Research
Right:
@ 2022 Holeckova
Document type:
Thesis/dissertation
File:
RUSH15waH2_20230509154023517.pdf