With pleasure I present to you the Makerere University College of Health Sciences (MakCHS) annual report for the year 2023. This report provides only a snapshot of activities at MakCHS, as we went about executing our mandates of teaching and learning, research, and service delivery throughout 2023.
Through our mission to provide transformational education and research to improve service delivery and wellbeing of the communities, MakCHS exhibited admirable performance through its five constituent schools; School of Medicine, School of Biomedical Sciences, School of Public Health, School of Health Sciences and School of Dentistry. I wish to congratulate all our staff, students, and stakeholders upon completion of a very productive 2023, as we struggled to return to the pre-COVID University calendar. Special thanks go to each one of you for your individual and cooperate contributions to offering our students, staff and partners memorable learning experiences at MakCHS.
Our major challenge is keeping with the current and emerging needs of the society we serve nationally and globally. This year MakCHS had a systematic review of the 2011 college research agenda to create the 2023-2040 research agenda that is responsive to the third national development plan (NDP III) and global sustainable development goals (SDGs). In addition to key priorities of the 2011 research priorities that are still relevant, the revised research agenda has adopted key pressing societal challenges that include Translational Science, Biomedical Research & Discovery (including pre-clinical studies, genomics,
product development & commercialization), Population Health, Climate change, health systems research, urbanization and their impact on health, pollution, food security and immigration. In addition, mental health as wells as Digital Health, Artificial Intelligence and Big Data applications were included as priority areas to improve health outcomes for the 21st century society.
We continue to be spurred on by our mission to provide transformative education to health professionals that will transform health care in Uganda, Africa and globally. We are encouraged by the great words of Jon Gordon, an American author and speaker on leadership who said, “We don’t get burned out because of what we do. We do get burned out because we forget why we do it”. At MakCHS, remembering our vision to be a leading and transformational institution for academic excellence and innovation in Health sciences in Africa keeps us going strong.
I extend my sincere gratitude to all our stakeholders including but not limited to all MakCHS staff, students, alumni, partners, funders, patients and health care providers for your unwavering commitment to serve humanity.
On behalf MakCHS leadership I wish you a happy holiday season and a blessed productive 2024
Professor Damalie Nakanjako
Principal - Makerere University College of Health Sciences