Okot, Solomom Paul
Izudi, Jonathan
Ssenyonga, Ronald
Babirye, Juliet Ndimwibo
Article History
Received: 12 June 2024
Accepted: 2 September 2024
First Online: 19 September 2024
Declarations
:
: Ethical clearance was obtained from the Makerere University School of Public Health Higher Degrees Research and Ethics Committee (July 23, 2020). The confidentiality of study participants was ensured through the use of unique identification codes. As secondary data were retrieved and analyzed, the need for informed consent was waived by the ethics committee per the local research guidelines and regulations as it was logistically infeasible to trace all the participants. For interviews, research assistants obtained informed consent from participants during routine clinic visits after explaining the study process, benefits, risks, and withdrawal of participation. Participants who could read and write provided informed consent by signing whereas those who could not, did so by thumbprinting. Overall, the study was conducted following the Declaration of Helsinki, which emphasizes the ethical principles for human subject research—beneficence, nonmaleficence, autonomy, and justice. Additionally, administrative permission was sought from the Hospital Director of Fort Portal Regional Referral Hospital.
: Not applicable.
: The authors declare no competing interests.