Utilizing the Wayo-Nero ("Aunt-Uncle") Strategy as a Vehicle for Improving Access to Mental Health Services in Post-conflict Northern Uganda: Effectively Bridging Indigenous/Traditional and Modern/Biomedical Therapy Systems

In Uganda less than 20% of people with mental illness access care in hospitals. The problem is two-fold: (1) resistance on the part of people to access care in (modern) clinical settings, and go to traditional healers instead; and (2) bio-medical mental health professionals are suspicious of what traditional healers offer. Our general objective is to reduce the treatment gap among people with mental illness by increasing access to mental healthcare, reducing stigma, and thereby minimizing suffering among people with mental Illnesses.