“When they stop coming, we lose them”: a qualitative study assessing health workers’ experiences on treatment default during outpatient therapeutic care for severe acute malnutrition at Gulu regional referral hospital, Uganda

Outpatient therapeutic care treatment default is driven by a complex intersection of health system and structural limitations, caregiver socio-economic challenges, and child-related factors. Addressing these requires strengthening defaulter tracing via systematic tracking and community follow up, decentralizing OTC services to lower level facilities with dedicated staff, and ensuring consistent RUTF supply, staffing, and clinic schedules.