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Global Health Econ Sustain Improving health of older adults in rural Uganda

supervision budget line covers the cost of supervisors’ time governments with limited budgets and health provider
spent on the geriatric activities of the VHWs, but clinical workforces will face in prioritizing their needs, the Kisoro
supervisors would not even be available if not for the Elders Project provides a blueprint for impactful, low-cost,
supervision program funded by DGH. and sustainable care for this vulnerable, often forgotten
population.
Prior community health worker programs in Uganda
failed due to inadequate supervision, training, funding, Acknowledgments
and the voluntary nature of the workers (Zheng et al.,
2019). The exceptional abilities and performance of the None.
VHWs involved in this project are largely attributable to
their long-term involvement with and training by DGH. Funding
DGH established the necessary infrastructure for training The Kisoro Elders Project is funded by philanthropic
and supervision, provided funding for these structures, contributions from family, friends, and colleagues of PB
and implemented the stipend incentivization model, all and HB. It depends on the infrastructure, especially the
of which are essential for the success of the Kisoro Elders Kisoro VHW Program, established by DGH Uganda.
Project. Despite these caveats, other communities, regions, DGH Uganda is a collaboration between KDH in Kisoro,
and health systems may be able to tailor the ideas in this Uganda, funded by the Uganda Ministry of Health, and
model to meet the support needs of older adults in their the community-based organization DGH Uganda, which
care, choosing interventions that fit within their budgets, is funded primarily by participating medical centers Albert
organizational structures, and personnel capabilities. Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, New York, United

The screenings and interventions described in this States of America and the Donald and Barbara Zucker
study constituted the majority of the project’s activities School of Medicine at Hofstra University, Hempstead,
during the specified time frame. As the project matures, New York, United States of America.
the initial high volume of screenings and interventions will Conflict of interest
decrease, with only previously unscreened elders and those
“aging in” remaining. In addition, equipment has a finite The authors declare they have no competing interests.
lifespan (for instance, solar lights have a projected lifespan
of 5 – 7 years), necessitating replacement initiatives. With Author contributions
a reduced level of initial activities, more time and funding Conceptualization: All authors
can be allocated to new initiatives, such as the development Format analysis: Patricia Bloom, Harrison Bloom, Jospeh
of depression support groups, general social support Stephens, Gerald Paccione
groups, interventions for cataracts and incontinence, and Investigation: Patricia Bloom, Harrison Bloom, Iraguha
political advocacy for older adults. Moses, Gerald Paccione
Writing-original draft: Patricia Bloom, Harrison Bloom,
5. Conclusion Gerald Paccione

The Kisoro Elders Project aims to offer low-cost, Writing-review & editing: All authors
straightforward interventions delivered by VHWs to Ethics approval and consent to participate
all elders in need, emphasizing function and promptly
enhancing the quality of life. This study demonstrates the This study involved testing the feasibility of project
feasibility of this goal. Over time, the project has matured, implementation, and therefore no experimental subjects
adopting the principles of COPC, and has become a were involved, rendering ethics approval and informed
data-driven endeavor that revolves around health needs consent not relevant. Beneficiaries of the project were free
assessments, targeted screening activities, and the referral to participate or not as they chose, and therefore, their
and provision of services. Embedding the Kisoro Elders participation implied consent.
Project as the “geriatric domain” within an existing, highly
functional, multi-service VHW program serving the Consent for publication
general community has been instrumental in ensuring its Not applicable.
cost-effectiveness.
A similar project has not been reported in the global Availability of data
health literature. Given the rapidly escalating population Data used in this work are available from the corresponding
of older citizens worldwide, and the challenges that author upon reasonable request.

Volume 2 Issue 2 (2024) 8 https://doi.org/10.36922/ghes.3000