The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and Uganda recently reported an outbreak of Ebola Virus Disease (EVD), which is a serious and often deadly disease caused by a person being infected by the Ebola virus.

The virus spreads through direct contact with body fluids such as blood, saliva, faeces, vomit, urine, sweat or genital fluids from a person who is infected with EVD.

The symptoms of EVD usually develop after 8 – 10 days from contact with an infected person and may include fatigue, high fever, headache, sore throat, muscle and joint pains, vomiting and diarrhea and in severe cases, bleeding.

What should we do as the Makerere University community?

The Chief, Makerere Health Services, Prof. J.K. Byamugisha advises as follows:

1. Avoid unnecessary contact such as shaking hands, hugging etc.
2. Place alcohol disinfectants or hand washing equipment at all entry points within the University and ensure everyone is using them.
3. Students should sit in single-person chairs while in class, avoiding contact with their neighbours.
4. Do not sit too close to one another especially in frequently crowded places such as classrooms, library or any other waiting area.
5. While at the University Hospital, wash hands a the gate, use alcohol disinfectant at the reception.
6. All patients should have a maximum of one caretaker – others can check on them by calling.
7. Avoid bringing luggage to the University Hospital.
8. Target to do as instructed by the health worker.
9. For further information and guidance on Ebola, please call Dr. Charles Basigara on Tel: 0702 966652 and Sr. Eunice Namubiru on Tel: 0779 950978 (Contact persons for the University Health Services)

Additionally, always look out for and ensure full compliance with Ministry of Health (MoH) Infection Prevention and Control measures such as the one below.

Please find attached detailed communications from Prof. Byamugisha and
the Permanent Secretary Ministry of Health.

The Makerere University College of Health Sciences and Case Western Reserve University, partnering with Mbarara University of Science and Technology, are implementing a five-year project titled “Self-management Intervention for Reducing Epilepsy Burden Among Adult Ugandans with Epilepsy.”

The program is funded by the National Institute of Health (NIH) and the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS). One aspect of the program is to provide advanced degree training to qualified candidates interested in pursuing clinical and research careers in Epilepsy. We aim to grow epilepsy research capacity, including self-management approaches, in SSA.

The Project is soliciting applications for Master’s Research thesis support focusing on epilepsy-related research at Makerere University and Mbarara University, cohort 3, 2026/2027.

Selection criteria

• Should be a Master’s student of the following courses: MMED in Internal Medicine, Paediatrics, Surgery and Neurosurgery, Psychiatry, Family Medicine, Public Health, Master of Health Services Research, MSc. Clinical Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Nursing, or a Master’s in the Basic Sciences (Physiology, Anatomy, Biochemistry, or any other related field).
• Should have completed at least one year of their Master’s training in the courses listed above.
• Demonstrated interest in Epilepsy and Neurological diseases, care and prevention, and commitment to develop and maintain a productive career, and devoted to Epilepsy, Clinical Practice, and Prevention.

Research Programs:

The following are the broad Epilepsy research priority areas (THEMES), and applicants are encouraged to develop research concepts in the areas of: Applicants are not limited to these themes; they can propose other areas.

• The epidemiology of Epilepsy and associated risk factors.

• Determining the factors affecting the quality of life, risk factors, and outcomes (mortality, morbidity) for Epilepsy, epilepsy genetics, and preventive measures among adults.
• Epilepsy in childhood and its associated factors, preventative measures etc.
• Epilepsy epidemiology and other Epilepsy related topics.
• Epilepsy interventions and rehabilitation

In addition to a formal master’s program, trainees will receive training in bio-ethics, Good Clinical Practice, behavioral sciences research, data and statistical analysis, and research management.

The review criteria for applicants will be as follows:

·      Relevance to program objectives

• Quality of research and research project approach
• Feasibility of study
• Mentors and mentoring plan; in your mentoring plan, please include who the mentors are, what training they will provide, and how often they propose to meet with the candidate.
• Ethics and human subjects’ protection.

Application Process

Applicants should submit an application letter accompanied by a detailed curriculum vitae, two recommendation letters from Professional referees or mentors, and a 2-page concept or an approved full proposal describing your project and addressing Self-Management Intervention for Reducing Epilepsy Burden Among Adults or an epilepsy-related problem.

For more information, inquiries, and additional advice on developing concepts, don’t hesitate to get in touch with the following:

Makerere University College of Health Sciences

Prof. Mark Kaddumukasa:  kaddumark@yahoo.co.uk

Mbarara University

Ms. Josephine N Najjuma: najjumajosephine@yahoo.co.uk

Only short-listed candidates will be contacted for Interviews.

A soft copy should be submitted to the Administrator of the Epilepsy Project. Email: smireb2@gmail.com; Closing date for the Receipt of applications is 5^th July 2026.

Makerere University School of Public Health (MakSPH), through the Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, in collaboration with the Global Health Institute at the University of Georgia, USA, is inviting applications for an intensive five-day short course on the Foundations and Applications of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML) in Tuberculosis (TB) Research.

Date: June 22–26, 2026
Time: 2:00 PM – 6:00 PM (EAT)
Venue: ResilientAfrica Network (RAN), Kololo MakSPH Annex

The course is designed for Master’s and PhD students, research fellows, junior researchers, and professionals in public health, medicine, digital health, TB/HIV, biostatistics, bioinformatics, computer science, geography, nursing, and related fields.

Participants will gain hands-on exposure to AI/ML applications in TB and TB/HIV research, including Generative AI, LLMs, Computer Vision, GeoAI, ethical AI use, data management, and model deployment.

Limited scholarships are available.
Application deadline: June 1, 2026

Read more and apply here: https://sph.mak.ac.ug/anouncement/allstar-training-program-applications-open-for-ai-and-machine-learning-course-in-tb-research/