Empower Through Health
Empower Through Health is an American NGO operating in Eastern Uganda. ETH conducts global health research, operates a rural health center and is building a primary school in Buyende District. It is a registered 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization in the United States of America and a sister organization to Empowerment To Heal Uganda, registered as a NGO in Uganda.
History
Founded in 2018 on the belief that all lives hold equal value, ETH seeks to address global disparities in healthcare by improving access to medical services in underserved regions of Uganda. The organization emerged from collaborations between Yang Jae Lee and Ibrahim Ssekalo, who began working together on health initiatives in Uganda.
That same year, ETH opened the Mpunde Health Center in Buyende District, Uganda, which now serves over 10,000 people annually. The organization has also implemented public health education programs reaching approximately 70,000 community members.
In 2021, ETH expanded into education with the launch of the Global Health Experiential Fellowship, a research training program for predoctoral students from Uganda and the United States. The program has trained over 160 alumni as of the end of 2024. ETH is also developing a primary school in Mpunde to invest in long-term community development.
Today, ETH continues to operate under shared Ugandan and American leadership, with Kazungu Rauben being the Executive Director of Empowerment to Heal Uganda and Dr. Yang Jae Lee the Executive Director of Empower Through Health.
Projects
Healthcare
The health center is located in Mpunde, a village in Buyende District. According to Empower Through Health's website, the health center has treated 57,000 patients since it opened. It is registered with the Ugandan Ministry of Health. The facility provides free mental health care and primary medical services, including nutrition programs, deliveries, and community outreach campaigns such as immunization and deworming. In Uganda, mental health care is severely limited, and often only available in urban regions. For Buyende District, a catchment area of over 400,000 people, Mpunde Health Center is the referral center for mental healthcare.
Education
Global Health Experiential Fellowship
The Global Health Experiential Fellowship is a predoctoral training in global health research. American and Ugandan students are conducting research in Eastern Uganda. GHEF is co-directed by researchers from Yale University and University of Washington and Ugandan public health practitioners. An evaluation of the program, published in SSM - Mental Health, reviewed the fellowship's outcomes and found that it strengthened cross-cultural collaboration and research capacity between Ugandan and American students.
Mpunde Education Initiative
Education in Buyende District faces significant challenges due to pervasive poverty, limited infrastructure, and low school completion rates, which constrain opportunities for children in rural areas. In response, ETH has initiated construction of a primary school in Mpunde to improve access to quality education in the area. The organization also continues providing support to vulnerable students in local primary and secondary schools by supplying learning materials and helping with tuition where feasible.
Research
ETH conducts research focused on improving access to physical and mental healthcare in low resource areas. The organization's research efforts have produced multiple peer-reviewed publications. ETH has published on community mental health, stigma reduction, and pathways to care in rural Uganda. Its work has included studies on beliefs about mental illness and suicidality, collaboration among traditional and biomedical providers, and pathways to care for psychosis. ETH has also explored anti-stigma interventions through community-led theater programs, the development of a radio program to destigmatize mental illness, and gender-specific stigma differences.