by Elizabeth Ariho
1. Background
Newborn, Infant and Child Health Education International (NICHE International) is a UK-registered charity whose work focuses on improving the health and survival of babies and children in low- and middle-income countries through education and healthcare training. Its specific objective is to reduce mortality by equipping healthcare workers with practical skills to provide quality newborn care.
NICHE International introduced its neonatal training programme in Uganda in 2022, beginning at Bwindi Community Hospital (BCH). The programme uses two key approaches that is: Neonatal Care Courses (NCCs), which equip healthcare professionals with essential skills to care for newborns during the first 28 days of life, infancy stage and as the grow. Then the Generic Instructor Course (GIC), which prepares selected healthcare professionals to become trainers of the NCCs.
The programme follows NICHE International’s 10-step sustainability approach, with the ultimate aim of developing a strong local faculty capable of independently conducting neonatal training without continued dependence on UK instructors.
2. Ugandan Training Achievements
So far in Uganda, 11 Neonatal Care Courses (NCCs) and one Generic Instructor Course (GIC) have been conducted from 2022 to 2026. The NCCs reached approximately 265 course participants, while 12 healthcare professionals were trained as instructors through the GIC, giving a total of approximately 277 training participations.
- 22–25 February 2022 – Bwindi: NCC, 24 health workers.
- 21–22 February 2023 – Bwindi: GIC, 12 instructors.
- 23–25 February 2023 – Bwindi: NCC, 24 participants.
- 27 February–1 March 2023 – Bwindi: NCC, 24 participants.
- 26–28 October 2023 – Bwindi: NCC, 24 participants.
- 20–22 January 2025 – Bwindi: NCC, 24 participants.
- 23–25 January 2025 – Bwindi: NCC, 24 participants.
- 27–29 January 2025 – Bwindi: NCC, 24 participants.
- 26–28 May 2025 – Bwindi: NCC, 24 participants.
- 29–31 May 2025 – Bwindi: NCC, 24 participants.
- 5–6 January 2026 – Kabale: NCC, 25 health workers.
- 7–8 January 2026 – Kabale: NCC, 24 health workers.
In February 2023, the first Ugandan instructor group completed the GIC, with all 12 instructors subsequently taking responsibility for teaching the NCC at Bwindi and the first independent Ugandan NCC was conducted in October 2023, where six members of the trained Bwindi faculty independently taught nursing students, demonstrating that the programme had successfully moved from externally supported training towards local ownership.
In May 2025, the Ugandan instructors were independently conducting NCCs for final-year nursing students at Uganda Nursing School Bwindi. The training was specifically viewed as a way of preparing newly qualified nurses to carry neonatal skills and confidence into health facilities across Uganda.
3. Development of Local Ugandan Capacity
A major achievement of the programme is the development of a Ugandan neonatal training faculty. The programme initially trained healthcare workers as NCC participants and subsequently selected experienced candidates for GIC instructor training.
As a Ugandan Neonatal Care Course Instructor, I progressed through this pathway from being trained in neonatal care, to becoming an instructor after completing the GIC, and subsequently supporting the delivery and coordination of neonatal care courses in Uganda.
This transition is particularly important because NICHE International’s model is designed to ensure that knowledge does not remain with visiting international trainers. Instead, trained Ugandan instructors are empowered to teach their colleagues and future healthcare workers, creating a cascade of neonatal knowledge and skills within the Ugandan health system. NICHE describes this as the central mechanism through which training becomes sustainable.
4. Impact at Bwindi Community Hospital
The NICHE International programme has made an important contribution to strengthening neonatal care at Bwindi Community Hospital through:
- Improved knowledge and confidence in essential newborn care.
- Improved confidence in neonatal resuscitation, thermal care and breastfeeding support.
- Strengthened recognition and management of neonatal danger signs and emergencies.
- Increased practical skills in caring for sick and vulnerable newborns.
- Development of a local faculty capable of independently conducting NCCs.
- Integration of neonatal training into the preparation of nursing students
Overall Contribution
NICHE International’s programme has moved beyond individual training to sustainable capacity building. By developing Ugandan instructors and continuously training healthcare workers and students, the programme creates a multiplier effect: trained health workers apply and share their skills within their facilities and communities.
The ultimate contribution is to reduce preventable newborn and child mortality by ensuring that healthcare workers caring for babies have the knowledge, practical skills and confidence to provide timely, effective and lifesaving care.
Key Achievement
2022–2026: 11 NCCs conducted, 265 NCC participants trained, 12 Ugandan instructors developed, and neonatal training expanded from Bwindi Community Hospital to healthcare workers in Kabale District.
