Mengo and Guluddene Units for Children with Learning Difficulties
Occupational Therapy Department
Mengo Hospital
Mengo Hospital is situated on the western side of Kampala. The Hospital is a Christian Non Governmental Organisation under the Church of Uganda. Its vision is to provide health services in a holistic manner and its mission is to provide excellent sustainable health services that bear witness to Christ. The Occupational Therapy Department is an independent self funding Department under the “umbrella” of the Hospital that has strong links with the Ministry of Special Education.
Occupational Therapy Department
The Mengo Unit was established in 1985 in the grounds of Mengo Hospital and was basically a day school for children with learning disabilities and/or multiple handicaps. In 1990 the school at Mengo started a “sister day school” at Guluddene that is in a relatively isolated position some 30 miles north of Kampala. The Guluddene unit was formally opened in 1991 by Mrs Janet Museveni, the wife of the President, and the two schools continued to work hand in hand during the 1990s.
It was then and is still considered important that children initially live with their families in ordinary situations so as to encourage parents to be involved with their children. However, early in 2000 it was decided that a boarding element should be introduced so that some of the older children could learn to become more independent. Space at Mengo was limited while Guluddene had both land (about 2acres) and buildings that could be adapted and during 2001 and 2002 building adaptations took place and the first boarding pupils attended the school in 2003.
In 2004 the two schools merged with the Cerebral Palsy Clinic in the Hospital and as a result the Mengo Unit reorganised itself to provide an Early Stimulation Centre that helps disabled babies and children from 0 years upwards. This is currently manned by an occupational therapist and has equipment and toys in a stimulating environment to help movement and gross and fine motor control.
In time it is expected that the name of the Department will be changed to “Children’s Rehabilitation Services/Centre” to more accurately reflect the nature of its work.
The Department Head during these exciting and innovative developments was Patti Squire. In August 2007 Patti relinquished the role of Head of Department and reverted to her original role of Technical Advisor spending one day each week in the Department. The new Head of Department is Richard Mpango.The vision and mission for the Occupational Therapy Department is to provide excellent sustainable health and educational services in a holistic manner that bear witness to Christ.
The Occupational Therapy Department aims to provide the following services:
- An assessment service for children and babies
- A daily disability clinic giving therapy to handicapped babies and children who for various reasons would not benefit from the school side of the Department.
- Encourage each child in both the schools and clinic to develop as fully as possible – physically, emotionally, mentally, socially and spiritually etc.
- Advise the parents and community on how to care for mentally and multiply handicapped children/people and provide workshops to help the caretakers.
- Provide practical training in :
- Self Help Skills
- Activities for Daily Living and
- Crafts, gardening & looking after animals, so that the children/adults can become as independent as possible in later life.
The whole emphasis of the Department is on practical skills and equipping the children for life through purposeful activities like; craft work, sewing, gardening, growing crops, keeping goats, cows and chickens, cleaning, cooking etc. The children learn at their own pace and ability. Through involvement in these activities and with encouragement, they learn self esteem and purpose and can play their part in the circle of life. The teachers and occupational therapists set objectives for each child so that their progress can be assessed. Through this both the child and staff can see improvement. This is encouraging and it enables everyone to continue. The children gain more confidence because they are succeeding and the parents and carers are helped to accept the children for who they are and for what they can do rather than what they cannot do.
The Mengo Unit provides:
- An assessment service
- An early stimulation centre
- A day school helping children with learning difficulties and multiple handicaps.
The Guluddene Unit provides
- A day and boarding school, at Guluddene, helping children with learning difficulties and multiple handicaps.
At Mengo there are currently 42 enrolled children with 70 on a waiting list. At Guluddene there are 16 boarders and 12 day pupils. The Guluddene Unit is an integral part of the Occupational Therapy Department providing a facility where some of the older children can learn and develop more independent living skills. Children are only allowed to become boarders after a satisfactory two year period as a day pupil.
FOAG Support
FOAG has supported the development at Guluddene since 1999 and now supports the whole work of the Occupational Therapy Department. It does this by making an unrestricted annual donation to the revenue budget. It also provides support with capital projects.
In 2005/2006 FOAG worked with the Basingstoke Community Churches to provide electricity at Guluddene. A mains supply had been considered but the cost and the unreliability of this supply dictated that instead a small diesel electric generator should be installed to provide electrical power. The generator was purchased in the UK and transported to Kampala in a container shipped by the UK Rotary Club of Stourbridge. Dave Downer, a pastor with the Basingstoke Community Churches, led a group of eight volunteers from the UK to Guluddene in January 2006 where they wired up all the buildings and installed the generator. This was started and the lights switched on for the first time by the Guluddene children on Friday 10th February 2006. Everyone then celebrated with cake and pop.
If you would like to learn more about Mengo and Guluddene or make a contribution towards its upkeep and operation please contact Mike McConville, the FOAG coordinator for this project. You can contact him by e-mail on mike.mcconville@btopenworld.com or by telephone on 01384 378431.
Pictures Taken in February 2006
The new electrical generator
Switching on ceremony with the children
The lights come on
We all cerebrate with cake and pop
The Stourbridge Rotary Club container also included specialist furniture, children’s playground equipment, a knitting machine and carpentry and garden tools for use in the Occupational Therapy Department. The container remains at Mengo and will be used as a girl’s workshop and secure storage area, complementing a similar arrangement for the boys.
Pictures Taken in January 2007
The Stourbridge container converted to the Girls' Vocational Workshop and repainted
The Inside of the Girls' Vocational Workshop
The Physiotherapy Department
School at Mengo
More School
Under construction; the new Chicken House at Guluddene provided by the Rotary Club of Stourbridge
Pictures taken at Guluddene in November 2004
 Guluddene |
 Christopher Sturdy, FOAG Treasurer, talks to Patti Squire who started and leads Guluddene |
 Boys in class |
 Malcolm Rankin shows students pictures from his last visit |
 Girls in class in November 2004 |
 Girls talk to Cilla Owen in November 2004 |
 One of the cheerful bedrooms |
 Rabbit Hutches |
 Cultivation at Guluddene |
