“They could …distance themselves from me claiming I still had Ebola”: experiences of Ebola virus disease survivors in Central Uganda

Abstract

Ebola continues to be a great public health challenge in Uganda where it is vulnerable to future Ebola outbreaks. Survivors are likely to continue experiencing the after effects of Ebola during the recovery period. The study was conducted to explore experiences of Ebola survivors during and after the recovery period. A descriptive qualitative study was conducted in central Uganda. We conducted 14 in-depth among Ebola Virus Survivors who had previously had a diagnosis of EVD using purposive sampling. Data was collected from 18th November to 28th November 2024. Thematic deductive analysis was applied to analyze the data. Participants had varied response to Ebola diagnosis. Participants were initially hesitant to seek care, but they eventually agreed with their Ebola diagnosis and complied with medical treatment. Ebola survivors had conspiracy theories regarding Ebola which persisted even after survival. Ebola was attributed to witchcraft, while others thought it was introduced to reduce their population size and as a vehicle for organ donation. Survival was attributed to trade-offs with government and pretense of being sick. Ebola patients and survivors had formal and informal support from government and non-governmental organization which helped meet their social, physical and emotional needs during and after admission. Ebola patients and survivors had emotional, social, and physical challenges during admission and after discharge. Ebola patients experienced enormous emotional trauma related to worries of survival. Emotional and physical challenges persisted after discharge and they emanated from stigma, discrimination, financial constraints, marital problems and persisting physical ailments. EVD survivors experience significant health concerns and poor coping mechanisms. This mainly as result of the fatal and stigmatizing nature of Ebola virus Disease. Ensuring patients understand and adopt coping mechanisms reduces this stigma. There is need for community-based mental health and psychosocial interventions integrated within a broader package of care for EVD survivors.