By KT Reporter
Behind the Sickle Cell Clinic at Gulu Regional Referral Hospital, the tables are alive with colored drawings of parents with their kids, smiling suns, green-haired ladies, and the sick on hospital beds.
For an 11-year-old George Opiro* (not real name) whose mother asked that his real name should not be revealed for fear of stigma, art has become more than just a hobby. It is his therapy.
Opiro lives with sickle cell disease, a condition that has taken him in and out of hospitals for most of his young life. But every Thursday, he forgets the needles, pain, and hospital beds, because he is drawing and painting.
“When I draw, I feel like I’m travelling to a dream destination. My mind keeps wandering in many places, and I forget that I’m sick,” Opiro says softly, working on a picture of a patient on a hospital bed.
This emotional escape has been made possible by Tackle Sickle Cell Africa, a Gulu-based NGO that focuses on community screening of sickle cell, and recently incorporated art therapy to boost the mental health of children living with sickle cell disease.
Sarah Itego, a mother whose child has sickle cell and gets treatment from the Gulu Regional Referral Hospital, commended the organisation for the initiative, saying it makes her child happy. Itego says that when her child is happier, he rarely gets into a sickle cell crisis.
Derrick Mutatiina, the Executive Director of Tackle Sickle Cell Africa, told Uganda Radio Network in an interview that the project, named the Art Ease project, was started to complement modern medicine, because Sickle cell disease not only attacks the body, but weighs heavily on the mind.
Mutatiina explained that because of the chronic pain children experience, the frequent hospital visits, stigma, and isolation often lead to anxiety, depression, and low self-esteem.
Mutatiina said the Art Ease project is aimed at helping the children socialize during hospital visits, especially during the long hours of waiting for medical personnel to serve them, which can bring negative thoughts about the sickness.
The Acholi sub-region is among the sub-regions in the country with a high burden of sickle cell disease.
Statistics URN obtained from the records department of Gulu Regional Referral Hospital indicate that 2,055 children suffering from sickle cell were registered at the hospital from January 2024 to February 2025, and 9,788 were registered in the entire Acholi sub-region within the same period.
Mutatiina argued that the Art Ease program was incorporated after realizing that medicine alone isn’t enough, so the goal of the Art Ease is to give children emotional release, self-expression, and a way to find joy amidst their health battles.
The children work in groups, building friendships and confidence. Some paint their dreams, others their pain. Some simply color. But in every stroke, there’s comfort.
Mutatiina said, “Art doesn’t take away the disease, but it gives them a reason to smile. And sometimes, that’s just as important.”
Led by a group of medical student volunteers, the weekly sessions combine drawing, painting, and play. The children are encouraged to express their feelings visually, whether it’s pain, fear, or hope.
Art is a non-verbal language. Sometimes, children can’t say how they feel, but they can show it with a drawing,” said Ashaba Savio, a student of Gulu College of Health Sciences and a volunteer at Tackle Sickle Cell Africa.
Lillian Akullu, a resident of Koro, in Omoro district, said she introduced art to her child’s play routine without prior knowledge that it is therapy for her.
Akullu’s 12-year-old daughter was diagnosed with sickle cell at 18 months, and her life has been marked by frequent hospital visits coupled with emotional stress.
A year ago, I gave her a notebook and a pencil to draw a picture of our dog. I just wanted to be distracted while I took a nap. But as she drew, I noticed her giggling frequently,” Akullu said.
Akullu, who confessed that she has only known that drawing and painting calms the warriors during the interview, now plans to buy more art tools for her daughter.
“If my daughter is happy, I also feel relaxed and become more productive,” she said. According to an article “How Art Therapy Can Help Kids (and adults) with Sickle Cell”, published in xicle.com, art has cropped up in hospital programs in countries such as Cambodia and the U.S to provide distraction from health issues and pain for its participants.
“Art also gives sickle cell warriors a way of conveying their emotions about the struggles they go through daily,” it says.
Other medical literatures claim that art teaches children coping skills for chronic pain, since living with chronic pain raises risks of depression and anxiety by four times, art may raise one’s quality of life.
Besides, art helps patients develop a stronger sense of self and improve self-esteem by providing a platform to express their unique strengths and creativity, connect with others, share experiences, and develop a sense of community, as they become attuned to their physical and emotional needs and manage them better.
In Uganda, where mental health management is often in the back seat, especially for children with chronic illnesses, this initiative is filling a crucial gap. It is not just managing sickle cell, but restoring childhood to kids who have had too much pain, too soon-URN. Give us feedback on this story through our email: kamwokyatimes@gmail.com
