Pictures of ageing in Uganda; A partnership to explore demographics, phenotype and self perception in a community of older people
Lead Research Organisation:
University of Cambridge
Department Name: Institute of Public Health
Abstract
People are getting older and not just in Western countries. Societal pressures from extended life expectancy are now emerging in low-income countries. We don't really know what ageing looks like in low-income countries, and many people don't know their exact age. We will work on methods to determine people's exact ages (demographic information) in a community in Uganda and build up a picture of its older people's functional and cognitive health. At the same time, we will involve the same people in a community arts project to explore their self-perception of ageing.
Ageing populations across the globe will lead to a rise in frailty, disability and dependency. Solutions to these problems must be financially, socially and environmentally sustainable to avoid prejudicing life chances of current and future populations. In addition proposed solutions must have buy-in from the older population themselves.
Through this grant we will establish an exciting multi-disciplinary partnership network of academics, artists, non-governmental and governmental organisations in Cambridge and Uganda with a community of older people in Uganda. This partnership will provide a framework to explore demographics, the healthy ageing phenotype, and self-perception using historical demography, psychology, public health epidemiology, and visual arts in order to build up a holistic picture of ageing in a community in Uganda. We will co-develop ideas with a community of older people to produce a multi-disciplinary demographic, phenotypic and functional capacity and visual representation of what ageing means to them. We hope that this forms the basis of a future research grant application.
Ageing populations across the globe will lead to a rise in frailty, disability and dependency. Solutions to these problems must be financially, socially and environmentally sustainable to avoid prejudicing life chances of current and future populations. In addition proposed solutions must have buy-in from the older population themselves.
Through this grant we will establish an exciting multi-disciplinary partnership network of academics, artists, non-governmental and governmental organisations in Cambridge and Uganda with a community of older people in Uganda. This partnership will provide a framework to explore demographics, the healthy ageing phenotype, and self-perception using historical demography, psychology, public health epidemiology, and visual arts in order to build up a holistic picture of ageing in a community in Uganda. We will co-develop ideas with a community of older people to produce a multi-disciplinary demographic, phenotypic and functional capacity and visual representation of what ageing means to them. We hope that this forms the basis of a future research grant application.
Planned Impact
Short term impact: this grant will connect researchers in Cambridge, UK and Uganda interested in working with colleagues around the topic of ageing. They will bring experience and expertise of working in different resource settings and different disciplines, but with a shared interest in ageing. These researchers will learn from each other and share their experience and ways of working to build a combined project
Medium term impact: Senior researchers will help to train early career researchers in multidisciplinary ageing research; this will include those attending the short course. The senior researchers will help a Ugandan student to apply for a PhD under the University of Cambridge- Africa scheme, which is led by Uganda's Makerere University and seeks to support African scientists. 3 post-graduate trainees working with the project will be trained in data collection methods
We will adapt/develop survey tools that can collect data on health and demographics of older people that can be used elsewhere in Uganda or East Africa
Long term impact: The project will produce information to help Ministries of Health and Gender plan their support for older people. We aim for this partnership to be a lasting collaboration between researchers in UK and Uganda in the area of ageing working across their subjects to build up a complete picture of what it is like to be older in Uganda.
Medium term impact: Senior researchers will help to train early career researchers in multidisciplinary ageing research; this will include those attending the short course. The senior researchers will help a Ugandan student to apply for a PhD under the University of Cambridge- Africa scheme, which is led by Uganda's Makerere University and seeks to support African scientists. 3 post-graduate trainees working with the project will be trained in data collection methods
We will adapt/develop survey tools that can collect data on health and demographics of older people that can be used elsewhere in Uganda or East Africa
Long term impact: The project will produce information to help Ministries of Health and Gender plan their support for older people. We aim for this partnership to be a lasting collaboration between researchers in UK and Uganda in the area of ageing working across their subjects to build up a complete picture of what it is like to be older in Uganda.
| Title | An Exhibition on Self-Perception of a Community of Older Persons in Busukuma Division |
| Description | Objectives: 1) To exhibit artwork and dance and drama skills by older persons to express their perceptions of older age as well as work produced by Artists in Residence. 2) To share findings and recommendations from the study with the different stakeholders that have been part of it. The event was very colourful and well attended, especially by the older persons and their community leaders. They expressed a lot of gratitude during their feedback session and look forward to future projects that involve them; especially by our government. Fashion show: Doreen Namatovu, the Masters student attached to the project engaged the older persons through fashion. After weeks of engaging them and understanding their perceptions regarding fashion, she was able to design clothes for some of them to show case. Some of these designs were made in Bark cloth; which is a traditional fabric that most of them used to wear back in the day and others; she managed to recycle some of their old clothing items by adding a piece of new fabric to give it a new look. This segment of the entire event was the highlight; the older persons involved were very vibrant and passionate about it. They displayed a great deal of enthusiasm and were quite entertaining. A video documenting all this will be shared. Performing arts: Mr Charles Kasumba, who is the dance and drama director at IDI has also been very supportive in developing this element of the self-perception theme. The older persons practiced their routines and acts for several weeks to deliver a wonderful performance on this day. They showed off all the dance moves of their youth as well as the songs that they could remember. |
| Type Of Art | Artistic/Creative Exhibition |
| Year Produced | 2019 |
| Impact | Feedback session: Towards the end of the event, the older persons who participated in the research were given an opportunity to give feedback. Most of them were grateful for the opportunity to participate in a project that was focusing on their needs. They felt relevant and included in the community; which has been lacking from most of the programmes that run in their community. They also called upon their local leaders to advocate on their behalf and forward their needs to government. This has led to a further data collection on the impact of the exhibition on older peoples lives, being analysed. Also led to an invitiation by MOGender to present finding at a National stakeholder meeting on older persons |
| Title | Pictures of Ageing Open Studio with Nikissi Serumaga and Martin Kharumwa |
| Description | 32° East in partnership with the University of Cambridge, Infectious Diseases Institute and the Margaret Trowell School of Industrial Fine Art, Makerere University hosted the Pictures of Ageing residency to explore self-perception among the elderly. Martin Kharumwa, Nikissi Serumaga-Jamo (former programs manager at 32° East) and Ife Piankhi were selected to respond to questions like; How are older people seen by society? How do older people see themselves? What does healthy ageing look like to older people in Uganda? On 20th September, there was an exhibition on the self-perception of elders in Busukuma Division where the artists exhibited the work created during this project. Following the exhibition, Martin and Nikissi held an open studios at 32° East to meet them, view their work, and hear more about their experience with researchers and the elderly. |
| Type Of Art | Artistic/Creative Exhibition |
| Year Produced | 2019 |
| Impact | A follow up research on the artists, researchers experiences of the multi-disciplinary project has been designed to capture experiences of the open studio and overall collaboration |
| URL | https://www.facebook.com/events/2843886732310921/ |
| Title | Pictures of Ageing Video |
| Description | Video made about the project and exhibition |
| Type Of Art | Film/Video/Animation |
| Year Produced | 2019 |
| Impact | Increased understanding of the project from within our organisation, and also with Ministry of Gender and others |
| URL | https://theacademy.co.ug/index.php/pictures-of-ageing/ |
| Description | We have developed a multi-disciplinary partnership of academics from UK and Cambridge, and established strong links with a community in peri-urban Uganda for research activities. |
| Exploitation Route | We hope to publish our findings in the coming year, but already the Ministry of Gender in Uganda are excited about our approach. Our partners HealthNest have established 3 peer support groups in the community which will continue post grant, and the MTSFIA will be applying lessons learnt in new craft workshops. Our qualitative research in analysis will provide pointers on whether a further evaluation of the effect of the arts on quality of life in older people should be studied |
| Sectors | Communities and Social Services/Policy,Education,Healthcare |
| Description | Capacity building 1 day course in Ageing Research Methods >30 Masters students, 8 Policymakers Staff training on data collection & tools piloted 2 day course in qualitative data collection and analysis - 20 Master students attended Stakeholder and team engagement 2x one week workshops in Uganda for the multi-disciplinary teams National - Ministries of Gender & Health District level - Mayor, LCIII Academic - College of Health Sciences, School of Public Health, CEDAT Community meetings |
| First Year Of Impact | 2018 |
| Sector | Communities and Social Services/Policy,Education,Healthcare |
| Impact Types | Cultural,Societal,Policy & public services |
| Description | The Lancet Neurology 20th Anniversary Lecture |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Policy Influence Type | Influenced training of practitioners or researchers |
| URL | https://www.dementiaresearcher.nihr.ac.uk/the-lancet-neurology-20th-anniversary-lecture-professor-ca... |
| Description | Training in Ageing Research Methods for Ministry of Health and Gender Ageing teams |
| Geographic Reach | Africa |
| Policy Influence Type | Influenced training of practitioners or researchers |
| Impact | We held a stakeholder meeting with Ministry of Health and Ministry of Gender (which looks after older people). We introduced the study and our work. They asked for a workshop on methods and internationally recongized evaluation of Research in Older Persons. This was held by the multi-disciplinary team. It included a round table discussion on development of research priorities for the Mininstries for Older Persons. |
| Description | Training on Qualitative data collection and analysis |
| Geographic Reach | Africa |
| Policy Influence Type | Influenced training of practitioners or researchers |
| Impact | Study team have gained skills for analysis of qualitative data which has led to submission of an abstract to the International AIDS Society Conference 2019. 20 Masters students gained training in qualitative data collection methods and use of NVIVO software. |
| Description | Extending the Pictures of Ageing multi-disciplinary network to Southern and Eastern Africa |
| Amount | £14,789 (GBP) |
| Funding ID | SYAG/086, RG 102642 |
| Organisation | University of Cambridge |
| Sector | Academic/University |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 01/2020 |
| End | 07/2020 |
| Description | OODA GCRF and Newton Consolidation Accounts Research Fund Award |
| Amount | £79,923 (GBP) |
| Funding ID | G118358 |
| Organisation | University of Cambridge |
| Sector | Academic/University |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 12/2022 |
| End | 03/2023 |
| Description | Collaborative agreement between University of Cambridge and Infectious Diseases Institute, Makerere University |
| Organisation | Makerere University College of Health Sciences |
| Department | The Infectious Diseases Institute, Kampala |
| Country | Uganda |
| Sector | Hospitals |
| PI Contribution | This collaboration has enabled this research project to be completed; we have had oversight of the project, and supported protocol development/ IRB approvals/ Managed the International Advisory Board. We have gained more funding for this project of which £64,300 will be used directly in Uganda for further activities of this consortium. It will fund some finishing of the papers, but also a stakeholder workshop on findings from the project. |
| Collaborator Contribution | IDI have managed the project in Uganda including protocol approvals, data collection, data management, running of the exhibition, sub-granting to smaller organisations. This collaboration was extended in 2022 with new funding from University of Cambridge, all of which will go to Uganda (£23,749) for qualitative and quantiative analysis of impact of this project. |
| Impact | Summary outputs 1) protocol approved by Ugandan and Cambridge IRB 2)data collection undertaken 3) Exhibition in community of art work/ fashion show/ dance and singing 4) Community peer support groups for older people established in 4 villages 5) Engagement in Ministry of Gender national activities for older persons |
| Start Year | 2018 |
| Description | CSaP talk - How to stop bad data driving out the good in an age of misuse, misleadingness and misinformation |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | CSaP talk - How to stop bad data driving out the good in an age of misuse, misleadingness and misinformation 4 March 2019 Ed Humpherson is the CEO of the Office of Statistics Regulation. He gave an elegant talk about how numbers can be used poorly - The Number, misleading and too much unsignposted data. He talked about creating standards and reporting on these, how his office has interacted with government departments to call such practice out and how they have responded. He also talked about responsible media. I gained insight into how such a government function can operate to hold government to account. It highlighted the fact that this is possible to do within a (relatively) stable governmental/public domain structure but that it would be unlikely professional integrity heading for CPD. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
| Description | Cambridge Festival 2022 |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | Regional |
| Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | We held an event at the Cambridge Festival 2022, with an exhibition of the art work produced as part of the Pictures of Ageing project, we showed the video and also had a Q&A session with the researchers and general public. Whilst this was attended by people in Cambridge, it also showcased 5 speakers from Uganda, including artists (2) and academics (3). |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022 |
| URL | https://kharumwa.tumblr.com/post/675062557377282048 |
| Description | Contemporary populations and dementia, what have we learnt and where are we headed |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | A talk was given at Fourth Annual NHMRC National Institute for Dementia Research Australian Disease Forum 2019 at Hobart, Tasmania Keynote Address: Contemporary populations and dementia, what have we learnt and where are we headed? |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
| Description | Formal Working Grous |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A formal working group, expert panel or dialogue |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | Local |
| Primary Audience | Policymakers/politicians |
| Results and Impact | Membership and, in some cases, leadership of these groups aims to bring experts together along with societal representation to improve policy making related to public health, ageing and inequalities in populations. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2021,2022 |
| Description | Global Challenges Conference |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | Local |
| Primary Audience | Other audiences |
| Results and Impact | Presentation at Cambridge Global Challenges (CGC) conference on 27 11 18. We presented on the project progress so far. This included partnership and project development. Representatives and interested academics from around Cambridge attended |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2018 |
| Description | Mapping Morality in Global Health |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Other audiences |
| Results and Impact | Study co-ordinator Dr Hortense Videler made a presentation at Mapping Morality in Global Health conference in Cambridge. 26th June 2018. Presented lessons learnt from first partnership meeting in Kampala Jan 2018 |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2018 |
| Description | Member of the National Council on Bioethics, Ageing Working Group |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A formal working group, expert panel or dialogue |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Policymakers/politicians |
| Results and Impact | These are dedicated meetings to influence policy and practice through evidence that exists or can be generated, to improve population health and reduce inequalities. These are government meetings, expert advisory groups (that led to the development of Inequalities in Health Alliance in the case of the RCP committee). |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2021,2022 |
| Description | Pictures of Ageing Presentation |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | Local |
| Primary Audience | Postgraduate students |
| Results and Impact | Dr Alice Reid presented on the project for the Public Health at Cambridge network event on Global Health in June 2018. This was a learning day in Cambridge to foster discussion on global health issues across the entire university |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2018 |
| Description | Support to older persons in Busukuma, uganda for COVID vaccination |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | Local |
| Primary Audience | Study participants or study members |
| Results and Impact | Support to peer support groups established in the trial to get covid vaccinations. 1. Societal impact - Reduction of COVID in older persons through vaccination 2. Economic - less catastrophic out of pocket costs for older person if they get sick with COVID |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2020,2021 |
| Description | The Lancet Neurology 20th Anniversary Lecture |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | Delivered The Lancet Neurology 20th Anniversary Lecture, at UCL, 33 Queen Square Institute of Neurology on 29 September 2022 and online - "The relevance of social and commercial determinants for neurological health". |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022 |
| URL | https://www.dementiaresearcher.nihr.ac.uk/the-lancet-neurology-20th-anniversary-lecture-professor-ca... |
| Description | WHO Bulletin Interview with Carol |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A press release, press conference or response to a media enquiry/interview |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | Interview with Carol Brayne: a life-course approach to prevent dementia https://apps.who.int/iris/handle/10665/272247 WHO Bulletin Interview with Carol |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2018 |
| URL | https://apps.who.int/iris/handle/10665/272247 |