By Dr. Monica Okuga | The World Health Organisation (WHO) new antenatal care guidelines recommend that every pregnant woman should make eight hospital/health facility antenatal care visits. In addition, pregnant women should have at least 2 obstetric ultrasound scans done; the first being done in early pregnancy (20-22 weeks) and the second in the third trimester/intrapartum for purposes of identifying any fetal anomalies and complications.

This is also in line with Uganda’s RMNCAH (Reproductive Maternal Newborn Child Adolescent Health) Investment case. In Luuka, most pregnant mothers seek antenatal care from lower level health facilities. The district of Luuka in Eastern Uganda lacks a hospital and the highest level of service provision is at Kiyunga Health Centre IV.  Most of these women do not have access to ultrasound scan services as these are non-existent in the district. However, those who must get a scan done have to incur travel expenses to the nearest district hospital (Iganga-about 30kms away) or private providers (outside Luuka) who can offer these services. This is in addition to paying for the services, which makes it expensive and far from reach for the most-at-need population.

After successful implementation of obstetric ultrasound scan services at the district hospital in Iganga with trained midwives at the forefront of conducting the scans, the Centre of Excellence for Maternal and Newborn Health Research at Makerere University School of Public Health at the beginning of this year launched a pilot study ‘Testing a Community-based Ultrasound Scan system during early and late antenatal care to facilitate gestation age dating, referral and preterm care in Luuka District one the low resource districts in eastern Uganda’ in Eastern Uganda. The aim of the pilot is to collect data and information that will inform scale up of the ultrasound services in lower level health facilities in other districts where it’s lacking.

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