The kick-off meeting of the ECD4MMH research team at the Kawempe Youth Center (KYC), August 2024. From left to right: Harriet Naiga (ECD4MMH research assistant), Mulondo Ruth (KYC MindUp Manager), Esther Kyazike (CEO Kawempe Youth Center (KYC)), and Andrea L. S. Bulungu (ECD4MMH principal investigator). 
Mothers of children under 2 attending the MindUp at the Kawempe Youth Center (KYC). Moms and babies visit at least every 100 days for growth monitoring and counseling on child care, feeding, and cognitive stimulation.
My ACHIEVE project, The Early Childhood Development for Maternal Mental Health study (ECD4MMH), will explore the potential for improving maternal mental health (MMH) during the critical “first 1,000 days” of child growth and development through a community-based early childhood development (ECD) program delivered by community workers in a peri-urban area of Kampala, Uganda. Many of the indicators of interest are measured using standardized questionnaires. For example, to assess perinatal depression, anxiety, and stress, I am planning to use the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS), Hopkins Symptoms Checklist (HSCL-10), and the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS), respectively. For child cognitive development, I’m considering the Caregiver Reported Early Development Instruments (CREDI). For maternal and child dietary intake, I’ll use the diet quality questionnaire (DQQ).
All these instruments are considered valid because they have been evaluated and demonstrated to be accurate and reliable. As a global health researcher, however, its essential to remember that “standard” tools have been validated for use in specific contexts and populations. Uganda is a country of over forty indigenous languages. In the Kawempe Division of Kampala, where the ECD4MMH study is based, the predominant language is Luganda. Just because an instrument is valid for an English-speaking segment of the American population, doesn’t mean that its valid for a Luganda-speaking segment of the Ugandan population.
At this stage in my year as an ACHIEVE Fellow, my topmost goal is to get my study submitted for ethical review as soon as possible. Among my preferred instruments, I need to determine which have been validated in a Luganda-speaking region of Uganda and publicly available for use.
Thankfully, for many of my preferred instruments, I will be able to build off the validation work of prior researchers. Their efforts allow me to get into the field faster, and with confidence that the conclusions I derive will be valid. To them I say a hearty weebale nyo–”thank you” in Luganda!