In Lapono Sub-County, Agago District, mental health care was once out of reach services were 20 kilometers away at Dr. Ambrosoli Memorial Hospital in Kalongo. For low-income families, distance and deep-rooted stigma, especially around epilepsy, meant many suffered in silence.

In 2022, Jacob Ray, a Peer Village Health Team (VHT) member, attended a transformative training led by psychiatric nurse Ocaka Jimmy from BasicNeeds UK in Uganda (BNUU).

“That training opened my eyes,” Jacob recalls. “I learned about different mental illnesses, referral pathways, and the support systems available.”

Armed with new knowledge, Jacob embraced his role as a community mental health champion. He conducted home visits to support families affected by mental illness, mobilized communities for awareness events and clinics, referred clients for specialized care, delivered health talks during monthly mobile clinics at Lira Kato Health Centre III.

Visits to clients at home became his most meaningful work. They allowed him to build trust, identify stigma hotspots, and work with BNUU counsellors to design targeted stigma-reduction messages.

“It’s in their homes where you feel the pain,” Jacob says. “Sometimes it’s a mother who hasn’t slept in days because her child won’t stop seizing. Sometimes it’s a man who hasn’t spoken to anyone in months. They open up when you come in peace.”

Before BNUU’s Community Mental Health Project, mental health services were centralized and inaccessible. Now, with services decentralized to Lira Kato Health Centre III, Jacob can connect people to care right in their villages bringing hope where there was once despair.

Jacob’s work extends beyond mental health. He integrates malaria testing and treatment, supports caregivers with other health needs, and bridges families to available resources. By addressing both mental and physical health, he strengthens the entire community’s well-being.