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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
September 30, 2002
New Ugandan Medical Drama to Broadcast Health
Information Regionally in Sub-Saharan Africa
HIV/AIDS, Malaria, Immunization and STDs to be Featured in 13-Episode TV Series KAMPALA, Uganda—A new medical drama set to premier this Wednesday on one of sub-Saharan Africa's largest television networks features a compelling cast of Ugandan characters facing life and death challenges, but Centre 4 will do more than just entertain because wrapped inside each episode will be messages about how to live healthier lives.
 Based in a semi-rural health center, Centre 4 will take on such health problems as HIV/AIDS, malaria, safe childbirth, and childhood immunization. The new series was developed by the Delivery of Improved Services for Health (DISH) II project, a partnership between the Ugandan Ministry of Health and a group led by Johns Hopkins Center for Communication Programs (JHU/CCP). The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) and the Ford Foundation provided financial support. The Mediae Company, a Kenyan communication organization, also participated in the production of Centre 4.
In the first episode of the 13-part series, the staff of fictional Konaweeka Health Centre are taken by surprise when the new doctor in-charge turns out to be a woman. Meanwhile, the health center is besieged by malaria. The program stresses the importance of preventing malaria during pregnancy by taking anti-malarial drugs and sleeping under insecticide-treated bed nets. In another episode, the handsome lab technician solves the source of a Cholera outbreak in Konaweeka market, and the health center staff join with community leaders to halt transmission through a hand-washing campaign.
 "Important health information has been seamlessly blended with drama in each episode of Centre 4. Each program tells its own story and the series overall carries continuing plots of suspense, drama, and humor," said Cheryl Lettenmaier, Executive Producer of the series and Communication Advisor to the DISH II Project. "We hope viewers will watch each week as the drama unfolds, but we also want them to begin to practice the healthier behaviors portrayed in the show."
Centre 4 was produced in Uganda with a Ugandan cast and crew working in partnership with a small production team from England. From program concept to scriptwriting and direction, the project was an apprenticeship program for Ugandan talent. The intention was to establish TV drama production expertise in Uganda so that future productions can be done independently.
The show, which is designed to appeal to men and women ages 18 to 35, will air every Wednesday on TV Africa in Uganda and in more than 20 other African nations with similar health problems. TV Africa has a potential viewership of more than 110 million people.
JHU/CCP is a leader in the field of entertainment-education, which uses music, television, radio, and live drama to deliver public health messages. With representatives in more than 30 countries, JHU/CCP pioneered the field of strategic, research-based communication for behavior change and health promotion that helped transform the theory and practice of public health communication.
For more information contact: Kim Martin at Johns Hopkins Center for Communication Programs, 111 Market Place, Suite 310, Baltimore, Maryland 21202, USA. Tel: 410 659-6300; Fax: 410 659-6266 e-mail: press@jhuccp.org. PRESS ROOM: http://www.jhuccp.org/pressroom/
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