Conference Abstract | Volume 8, Abstract NACNDC/19JASH038 (Poster A36) | Published: 05 Dec 2025
Peninah Singura1,2,&
&Corresponding author: Peninah Singura, Royal Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene, Kampala Uganda, Email: pensingura2012@gmail.com
Received: 11 Sep 2025, Accepted: 20 Oct 2025, Published: 05 Dec 2025
Domain: Non-Communicable Disease Epidemiology
Keywords: HIV, hypertension; diabetes, village health teams, task shifting
©Peninah Singura et al. Journal of Interventional Epidemiology and Public Health (ISSN: 2664-2824). This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution International 4.0 License (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
Cite this article: Peninah Singura et al,. Integrating village health teams into the prevention and management of hypertension and diabetes among people living with HIV in rural Uganda. Journal of Interventional Epidemiology and Public Health. 2025;8(ConfProc6):038. https://doi.org/10.37432/JIEPH-CONFPRO6-00038
People living with HIV (PLHIV) increasingly face non-communicable diseases (NCDs), particularly hypertension and diabetes, due to aging and long-term antiretroviral therapy (ART). Access to early detection and management of these conditions is limited in rural Uganda. Village Health Teams (VHTs) could bridge this gap through community-based screening, education, and referrals. This study assessed the feasibility of integrating VHTs into the prevention and management of hypertension and diabetes among PLHIV in Nakaseke District.
A mixed-methods, cross sectional cohort study enrolled 90 PLHIV, 12 VHTs, and 6 healthcare workers. Quantitative data were collected through structured questionnaires and community-based screening, while qualitative data came from key informant interviews and focus group discussions. VHTs received a three-day training on NCD health education, screening, and referral. Pre- and post-tests evaluated knowledge acquisition. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and thematic analysis.
At baseline, only 16.7% of VHTs demonstrated adequate knowledge of diabetes and hypertension; post-training, 91.6% scored above 68%. VHTs successfully conducted screenings, assessing 98.5% of participants for hypertension (34.6% confirmed) and 78.5% for diabetes (6.9% diagnosed). Key risk factors identified included physical inactivity (23.8%), excessive salt intake (28.5%), and harmful alcohol use (16.9%). Among PLHIV, 65.6% were unaware of their increased risk to Diabetes and Hypertension, and 91.1% reported insufficient information on their prevention and management. Despite these gaps, 78.9% supported VHT integration, 83.3% were comfortable being screened by VHTs, and all VHTs (100%) endorsed integration, but highlighting the need for training and additional resources.
Integrating VHTs into NCD prevention and management among PLHIV is feasible and well-accepted. Scaling up this approach through structured training, provision of equipment, and stronger health system linkages could strengthen community-based care and reduce the dual burden of HIV and NCDs in rural Uganda.
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