The Uganda Peoples’ Defence Forces (UPDF) has commenced a five-day specialized medical training course at the UPDF National Referral Hospital in Mbuya to upgrade its personnel's capacity to manage critical clinical emergencies.
The Basic and Intermediate Life Support training is being conducted by the UPDF Joint Staff Health Services in strategic partnership with a team of visiting medical specialists from the United Kingdom.
The program convenes doctors, clinical officers, nurses, and emergency medical technicians drawn from the Mbuya referral facility and military base health centers across the country to standardize emergency resuscitation and acute trauma response protocols.
The training was officially opened by the Deputy Joint Staff Health Services on behalf of Brig. Gen. Dr. Patrick Ochen, Chairman of the Board of Directors of the hospital.
In remarks delivered on his behalf, Brig. Gen. Ochen instructed the participants to engage fully with the specialized modules and cascade the life-saving knowledge to colleagues across their respective units. He emphasized that continuous medical education and structured clinical simulations are essential for closing operational gaps and improving diagnostic and treatment outcomes across military healthcare units.
The visiting British medical delegation is headed by the Defence Adviser and Defence Attaché to the British High Commission in Uganda, Lieutenant Colonel Ashley Wiseman.
Lt. Col. Wiseman commended the UPDF medical leadership for sustaining a long-term bilateral healthcare partnership with the United Kingdom, noting that the joint initiative creates an ideal environment for bilateral technical exchange, clinical knowledge sharing, and best practices in emergency trauma care.
The defense medical collaboration between the UK and the UPDF has previously delivered strategic institutional support, including technical assistance in establishing and equipping the UPDF’s specialized mental health department.
The ongoing training is designed to improve clinical triage, patient stabilization, and timely acute-care interventions during battlefield scenarios and routine medical emergencies in UPDF medical installations.
