Education

One of the primary goals of our efforts is to improve the baseline acute accident and emergency care provided in Ghana. In order to achieve these goals we have set forth to educate the first class of emergency medicine residents in Ghana, along with the emergency nursing and ancillary staff at Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital (KATH).

During this past year, the Ghana College of Physicians and Surgeons accepted the proposal for a 4-year Emergency Medicine Residency after which graduates will be conferred as Members in Emergency Medicine. There is also a provision for additional 2-year fellowship training in a variety of Emergency Medicine subspecialties.  The first curriculum of Emergency Medicine was accepted by the Ghana College during the summer of 2009.  A class of 7 house officers has been accepted after an application and interview process.  The KATH Emergency Medicine Residency commences October 2009.

The success of accident and emergency care depends on experienced ancillary staff and specialty trained emergency nurses. A one-year Emergency Nursing course is underway for thirty (30) promising nurses at KATH, with a bachelors’ degree in nursing. These nurses demonstrated an interest and aptitude in emergency care and were identified by their instructors and administration as the first group to receive this specialized training.

While educating those currently providing this vital service is critical, we also recognize the need to introduce the concept of emergency medicine to the next generation of residents. By invitation of provosts, we presented lectures on the field of emergency medicine to senior medical students at Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology and University of Ghana.  The University of Michigan and University of Utah have both hosted senior medical students for clerkship rotations in Emergency Medicine.


Recent developments:

• Residents began training in October, 2009
• 20 residents and medical staff at KATH took part in a five-day comprehensive, advanced trauma management course in October, 2009
• As an initial step towards forming a cohesive emergency department, we taught and instituted a standardized triage system. The validated South African Triage scale was piloted and then applied in the Accident and Emergency Center. The effect of its implementation is being investigated.
• Two young leaders of Emergency Nursing at KATH visited the University of Michigan for 6 weeks of training, career development and observation in the Emergency Department and Trauma Burn Unit at the University of Michigan.
• University of Utah hosted their first Ghanaian medical student rotated in Emergency Medicine

Future Planning and Goals:

• Emergency Ultrasound training course
• Interviews for the second class of Emergency Medicine will be held in April and training will begin in October, 2010
• Residents will attend a research training workshop with the aim of initiating self-driven research projects
• In coming years, U.S.-based residents, fellows and faculty will rotate to KATH to provide clinical care, resident teaching and research assistance through the Ghana EM Collaborative.