About me
I am a Global Health researcher, currently working as a Research Specialist at Karolinska Institutet and Postdoctoral researcher at Uppsala University. My mission is to improve the situation for children living with disabilities in low-income settings, through increased knowledge on prevalence, risk factors and development and implementation of relevant interventions.
As a Research specialist for Karolinska Institutet I am working on a collaboration with UNICEF, with an extensive review of screening instruments for early identification of children with developmental delays and disabilities in low-income settings. I am also involved in the Akwenda intervention programme for children with cerebral palsy in Uganda.
As a postdoctoral researcher at Uppsala University, I am one of the Principal Investigators of a research project for children with developmental delays and disabilities in Nepal, focusing on identifying risk factors at the time around birth and development of a family-centred intervention. I am also one of the course leaders for a course in Global Medicine.
I have previously lived and worked in Uganda for over four years, first as a representative for the Karolinska Institutet at the Iganga-Mayuge Health and Demographic Surveillance Site and later as a PhD student. I did my PhD studies on children with cerebral palsy in Uganda, looking at prevalence, functional development and access to care, available for download here. I have been involved in developing interventions for children with CP in Uganda; namely a goal-directed, family centred intervention to increase wheelchair use, as well as the multi-component Akwenda intervention for increased quality of life for children with cerebral palsy and their caregivers. I have also been involved in research activities in Lao PDR and India. In addition to my academic activities, I have done volunteer work in Tanzania, Uganda and Malawi.
Research description
Our research in the news
Cerebral palsy survey in Uganda fills knowledge gap
Survey Finds Cerebral Palsy More Frequent in Uganda than in High-income Countries
Children with cerebral palsy in rural Uganda have 25 times higher risk of premature death
Publications
A Nutritional status and growth of children and youth with cerebral palsy in eastern Uganda: a longitudinal, comparative, population-based study. Namaganda L, Andrews C, Wabwire-Mangen F, Peterson S, Forssberg H, Kakooza-Mwesige, PLOS Global Public Health. 2023. 3(6): e0001241
A Goal-Directed Program for Wheelchair Use for Children and Young People with Cerebral Palsy in Uganda: An Explorative Intervention Study. Andrews C, Kakooza-Mwesige A, Kamusiime S, Forssberg, H, Eliasson, A-C. J. Clin. Med. 2023, 12, 2325.
Participation of children and youth with cerebral palsy in Uganda: Activity attendance and involvement compared with peers without cerebral palsy. Andrews C, Imms C, Eliasson AC, Wanjala G, Kamusiime S, Opio E, Namaganda L, Kakooza-Mwesige A, Forssberg H. Dev Med Child Neurol. 2023 Feb;65(2):274-284.
Validity and test-retest reliability of the Ugandan version of the Pediatric Evaluation of Disability Inventory (PEDI-UG) in children and youth with cerebral palsy. Amer A, Hermansson L, Jarl G, Kamusiime S, Forssberg H, Andrews C, Kakooza-Mwesige A, Eliasson AC. Child Care Health Dev. 2022 Oct 7.
Functional development in children with cerebral palsy in Uganda: population-based longitudinal cohort study. Andrews C, Namaganda L, Eliasson AC, Kakooza-Mwesige A, Forssberg, H. Dev Med Child Neurol. 2021.
Akwenda intervention programme for children and youth with cerebral palsy in a low-resource setting in sub-Saharan Africa: protocol for a quasi-randomised controlled study. Saloojee G, Ekwan F, Andrews C, Damiano DL, Kakooza-Mwesige A, Forssberg H. BMJ Open, 2021. 11(3), e047634.
Excessive premature mortality among children with cerebral palsy in rural Uganda: A longitudinal, population-based study. Namaganda LH, Almeida R, Kajungu D, Wabwire-Mangen F, Peterson S, Andrews C, Eliasson AC, Kakooza-Mwesige, Forssberg H. PLoS One. 2020;15(12):e0243948.
Important report on cerebral palsy in Bangladesh: but different findings compared with other countries need further exploration, Commentary. Andrews C, Kakooza-Mwesige A, Eliasson AC, Forssberg H, Dev Med Child Neurol. 2019 May;61(5):511-512.
Impairments, functional limitations, and access to services and education for children with cerebral palsy in Uganda: a population-based study. Andrews C, Kakooza-Mwesige A, Almeida R, et al. Dev Med Child Neurol. 2019.
Prevalence of cerebral palsy in Uganda: a population-based study. Kakooza-Mwesige A, Andrews C, Peterson S, Wabwire Mangen F, Eliasson AC, Forssberg H. The Lancet Global health. 2017;5(12):e1275-e82.
Determinants of consistent condom use among female sex workers in Savannakhet, Lao PDR Andrews C, Faxelid E, Sychaerun V, Phrasisombath K.. BMC Women's Health (2015) 15:63
Commentaries on our publications
Dan B, Paneth N. Making sense of cerebral palsy prevalence in low-income countries.
Yeargin-Allsopp. The reality of cerebral palsy in Uganda
Tann C J. Promoting functional development for children with cerebral palsy in low-income countries
Teaching portfolio
- Teaching master programme in Global Health Karolinska Institutet
- Teaching occupational therapy programme Karolinska Institutet
- Teaching Global Medicine course Uppsala University
- Co-course leader Global Medicine course Uppsala University
Education
PhD Medical Sciences, MSc Global Health, BSc Physiotherapy