Social distancing in indigenous health-seeking knowledge for epidemic control used in Bundibugyo Ebola outbreak

Abstract

In 2007 an epidemic broke out in Bundibugyo, natives quickly created barriers and boundaries based on their ethnic differences and village locations in the mountain ridges deterring the movement and mixing of infected families with the masses to prevent contaminations. Okukuba empagga was a form of ‘traditional social distancing’ which was implemented as a health-seeking practice for preventing the spread of an epidemic by people who were threatened by a mysterious epidemic. This paper investigates the local beliefs and practices around epidemic illness constructions, the framing of an epidemic, and its effects on decision-making around health-seeking practices and preventions. This paper is part of my research on The Constructions of Ebola in Bundibugyo District in Uganda. Fieldwork was done for 12 months between 2016-2017 in the borderland communities of Uganda and the Democratic Republic of Congo who battled an epidemic outbreak in 2007-2008. Data were generated and analyzed using a qualitative and a phenomenological approach to guide the research process, together with ethnographic methodology and research methods like ethnographic interviews, and participant observations in the community, in-depth interviews with cultural leaders, epidemic survivor, caregiver, and relatives who lost their loved ones during the outbreak. This paper shows the constructions of an epidemic vary across cultures, it entails a balance between the symptoms of an epidemic, relationships between ethnic groups, nature, and spiritual beliefs. Health-seeking practices and beliefs which were used by natives were grounded in local knowledge of handling disease as part of cultural traditions, to mitigate the epidemic outbreak for more than three months before the intervention of external support of biomedical response teams.