Margaret Mungherera (25 October 1957 – 4 February 2017) was a senior consultant psychiatrist and medical administrator in Uganda. She served as the president of the Uganda Medical Association re-elected five times and ultimately the World Medical Association from October 2013 until October 2014. She advocated for psychiatric services throughout Uganda, beyond the capital, to improve conditions for Uganda's health-care providers and to get doctors organized in African countries in general.
Early life and education
Margaret Mungherera was born in Jinja, Uganda.[2]
Her father, a retired civil servant, traced his roots to the Butaleja District in the Eastern Region of Uganda. She was one of five siblings, three of whom became medical doctors.[3]
Concerned about the lack of counselling and support services for rape survivors in Uganda, Mungherera founded the non-governmental organisation Hope after Rape in 1994.[2]
In 1999, she was elected President of the Uganda Medical Association (UMA) and was re-elected five more times.[2] From 2000 until 2003, she was a consultant psychiatrist at the Mulago National Referral Hospital and was responsible for forensic services. Since 2003, she had served as a senior consultant psychiatrist at the Mulago Hospital Complex, responsible for psychiatric emergency services. Since 2012, she had been the clinical head of the Directorate of Medical Services (Departments of Internal Medicine and Psychiatry) at the Mulago National Referral Hospital.[3]
From October 2013 until October 2014 she served as the first female president of the World Medical Association, elected as such by 50 national medical associations worldwide.[6][7]
In September 2014, she was the keynote speaker at the Confederation of Medical Associations in Asia and Oceania General Assembly and 50th Council Meeting, Manila, the Philippines.[8]
In June 2015, after 31 years of continuous service, Mungherera retired from civil service, aged 57 .[9]
In November 2012, Mungherera received an Honorary Doctor of Philosophy from Kampala International University in recognition of her "historical achievements."[11]
Mungherera, M.; van der Straten, A.; Hall, T.L.; Faigeles, B.; Fowler, G.; Mandel, J.S. (1 September 1997). "HIV/AIDS-related attitudes and practices of hospital-based health workers in Kampala, Uganda". AIDS. 11 Suppl 1: S79-85. ISSN0269-9370. PMID9376105. S2CID7875072. WikidataQ38887644.
