Ponsiano's doctoral thesis is titled"The Mixed Experiences of Pregnant Women with Physical Disabilities in Accessing and Utilising Antenatal Care Services in Rural South-Western Uganda". It documents and sets out the extent of these challenges, and suggests strategies to improve services in this region, the place of his birth.
His aims were fourfold: to describe the accessibility of antenatal services; explain the utilisation of these services; explore the relationship between women with physical disabilities and healthcare providers; and explore how women with physical disabilities as well as midwives understand disability and the provision of antenatal services in rural south-western Uganda.
"The spirit of ubuntu, which may facilitate women's participation and functioning at the family, community and health facility levels, cannot be overemphasised". "This framework needs to be tested to determine its efficacy in other rural African settings," he noted."I suggest a further study to explore the effectiveness of maternity waiting homes from the perspective of women with physical disabilities and the community, in the context of a rural Ugandan setting."
He enrolled at Kyambogo University in Uganda, in the Department of Community and Disability Studies, for a three-year course on social work and community development. But he soon found that the focus was on disability-inclusive social work.