Donor support restarts Universal Fund and launches My Pill Box, My Health!
- 1 hour ago
- 3 min read
For the first time in over a year, the Universal Fund at Mildmay Uganda Hospital has received a significant injection of funding.
We have just sent over £8,000 to restart support for young people affected by HIV in Uganda, and over £12,000 to launch the first year of My Pill Box, My Health!, a youth-led project helping schoolchildren manage their HIV medication with dignity. This is only possible because of your generous support.
Restarting the Universal Fund
The Universal Fund provides education, vocational training, healthcare and food security to vulnerable children and young people living with or affected by HIV. Since 2002, more than 2,000 young people have been supported. But in recent years, global funding constraints have sharply reduced the resources available.
In 2024, no children accessed formal primary or secondary education through the Fund. For many families living with HIV in rural Uganda, school fees, uniforms and basic supplies are simply unaffordable. Without education and skills training, the cycle of poverty, stigma and interrupted healthcare continues.
This funding allows Mildmay Uganda Hospital to restart access to primary and secondary education, while continuing to provide psychosocial support, family strengthening and vocational training for young people who need it most. Every donation helps restore the opportunity for a young person to build a stable, independent future.
Launching My Pill Box, My Health!
At the same time, we are proud to announce the launch of My Pill Box, My Health!, the first project funded through Mildmay's new Partner-led Small Project Fund.
Developed with the GILO Young Positives Foundation, a youth-led organisation of young people living with HIV, this project addresses a simple but urgent problem: in Uganda, 150,000 children live with HIV, but antiretroviral therapy only works if it is taken consistently. Many schoolchildren face stigma, anxiety and confusion around when and how to take their medication.
Working in the Kassanda District, My Pill Box, My Health! provides 100 schoolchildren with customised, discreet pill organisers that allow them to manage their medication without drawing attention. The boxes are child-friendly and designed to "blend in" with ordinary school supplies, protecting privacy and reducing fear of disclosure.
The project goes further, delivering 30 workshops for children, parents and teachers to build a 360-degree support system, alongside school health talks reaching over 1,000 students to reduce stigma and normalise medication adherence.
The pilot runs for three months and is designed to deliver measurable improvements in adherence, while building evidence for scaling up the project to other districts across Uganda. Your donations are funding the entire first year of the project, and we will continue to fundraise to secure sufficient funds to continue the project.
What comes next
The Universal Fund and My Pill Box, My Health! are essentially both part of Mildmay's wider Uganda Health Programme, an ambitious plan to expand access to essential care in underserved communities across Uganda. This includes rebuilding JOY Health Centre & Hospice in Mbale into a regional hub, delivering maternity care, HIV services, palliative support and disability-inclusive rehabilitation to some of the most vulnerable people in East Africa.
None of this is possible without your faithful support. You believe in the work we do, and you trust us to deliver care that transforms lives. Thank you.
