Uganda – Bwindi Impenetrable Forest

Our Work

Help the Forgotten People of Uganda. When the government made this region a national park they displaced the Batwa Pigmys communities. Echuya Batwa, commonly known as pygmies, are an endangered group of people around Echuya Forest Reserve in Kisoro and Kabale Districts of South-Western Uganda.  IMR provides much-needed education on nutrition, basic health needs and mental health issues for this underserved area. Being nomadic forest dwellers it is theorized that their bones did not develop fully due to lack of vitamin D from their shaded forest lifestyles in which sunlight and calcium are necessary for normal bone development.  Because they can no longer access the region’s health care system, they often fall victim to malaria, rheumatism, respiratory infections and Hep C. 80 percent of them have yaws, a chronic disfiguring and debilitating childhood bacterial disease, easily cured – if diagnosed – by azithromycin.  Your team will make a real difference here.

In Uganda, 16 women die every day in childbirth. In 2016, there was a doctor to patient ratio of 1 doctor to 24,000 patients. Hygiene in public hospitals is among the worst in Africa. There is no free medical or dental care for the poor, in a country where 20% of the people live below the poverty line and many, especially in the north, live without toilets of any kind. One-third of children under five years old are stunted. Undernutrition is an underlying cause of 60 percent of deaths for children under five and micronutrient deficiencies, including in vitamin A and iron, are highly prevalent in women and children. Uganda’s population is the second youngest in the world, with half the country’s population younger than fifteen years old. The country has grown by more than 10 million people in the past ten years. Four out of five Ugandan youth (21% of the total population) are unemployed–the highest rate in Africa. For all of these reasons and more, Uganda is a country greatly in need of the acute medical and dental care and community health education provided by IMR. Malaria, respiratory infections, and diarrheal disease are among the most common causes of premature death in Uganda. You will play an important role in the treatment and prevention of these common infections.

This Mission

Join IMR as we return to Uganda to provide care and extensive health education in small villages within Bwindi Impenetrable Forest. Here, you will have the opportunity to learn how to run a hospital in the jungle as IMR partners with multiple Ugandan organizations to provide healthcare to patients with significant acute medical and dental conditions.

Interested in Training the Medical Leaders of this community? On this trip you will have the opportunity to provide clinical care to communities in need and teach at the Bwindi School of Nursing & Nurse Midwives providing guest teaching, skills training, mentoring, and more.

Bwindi is also home to the famed ‘Gorillas in the Mist.’  If you wish to extend, at an additional expense, to add on the once in a lifetime experience of seeing families of wild mountain gorillas in their natural environment, you have to book early!!  Uganda is just one of two countries in the world that provides an environment where gorillas can still live freely. Gorilla trekking permits are limited as they are mandated by the national government. Advanced booking is required (6+ months in advance – permits are limited to fewer than 12 per day ). Contact the IMR office today for more information – don’t wait!

During clinic days, your team will also participate in an ongoing effort to empower communities to take steps for better preventative care through community health education and in training community members to help others in their communities. Please join us in this remarkable country! As Winston Churchill wrote in 1907, ‘For magnificence, for variety of form and color, for profusion of brilliant life — bird, insect, reptile, beast — for vast scale — Uganda is truly “the Pearl of Africa.” The Kingdom of Uganda is a fairy tale. The scenery is different, the climate is different and most of all, the people are different from anything elsewhere to be seen in the whole range of Africa….what message I bring back….concentrate on Uganda.” Please join IMR to experience one of Africa’s friendliest, safest, most secure, stable countries, designated as the “best country to visit’ by Lonely Planet. Come see for yourself as you care for the people of this beautiful land.

Extend Your Stay

You’re journeying halfway across the globe, have you considered extending your stay to visit some of Uganda’s top spots? Join International Medical Relief on an exclusive trip extension provided by our partner, Worldwide Navigators!

Gorilla trekking is the experience of a lifetime!  You will trail a family of gorillas as they feed during the day, working closely with guardian guides to reach them.  You will be able to spend 30 – 60 minutes sitting close to the gorillas, observing them and taking photos if desired.  The family consists of 2 – 3 Silverbacks, females, grandmothers, juveniles, and infants.  Don’t miss this special opportunity by waiting too long to get a permit!   You need to obtain permits 6+ months in advance.  Worldwide Navigators can set up a fantastic experience for you and your family.  Don’t forget to book early!

Queen Elizabeth National Park is truly the Pearl of Africa – let Worldwide Navigators plan the safari of your dreams in this beautiful park!

Ready for the adventure? Connect with Worldwide Navigators today!