May 29, 2013

Why We Do What We Do: Angela Ofori-Atta



Angela Ofori-Atta, Ph.D., clinical psychologist at the University of Ghana Medical School, was the only African in her graduate school class at the University of British Columbia. During her studies, many discussions focused on North America and health challenges– piquing her interest in the field of mental health. Angela was encouraged when she found that, although expressed differently based on culture, the theories she was studying were applicable to her home country, Ghana. After reading “Behavior Therapy” by Wolpe, Angela became fascinated by the science of behavior and her focus began to shift to how the language of health transcended borders.

“I first heard of a global health conference at Yale through my husband, a Yale alumni and I was eager to be a part of our country’s delegation," explains Angela. "The GHLI Conference seemed like a great opportunity to share ideas and strategies on how to address Ghana’s health issues with colleagues at Yale and with other countries."

Angela’s work examines poverty’s impact on mental health. Although she has seen great strides in this area – including the passing of the mental health bill in 2012, Act 846 – she believes there is still much work to be done.  Mental health is often given the least priority in countries where contagious diseases are an issue.

In Ghana, although we are still without certain essential disciplines such as psychotherapists and occupational therapists, the mental health workforce now includes more individuals who are passionate about their work and focused on the patient. “Stigmatism around the field is changing and people are practicing more ethically,” said Angela. Collaboration between mental health workers and academia has aided in these positive shifts but lack of financial resources is a constant challenge.

When asked her advice for those looking to enter the field, Angela said, “Be prepared to believe in what you do.” Her belief and passion for the field of mental health has inspired others to face challenges and believe in the potential for progress.

Bridget Bash, GHLI Staff

May 7, 2013

Addressing NCDs in the Eastern Caribbean


Jamila Sykes,
Program Manager, GHLI

According to the World Bank, non-communicable diseases (NCDs) account for six of the top 10 leading causes of death in the Eastern Caribbean, quickly replacing infectious diseases as the main cause of mortality in the region. Communities in the Eastern Caribbean have devastatingly poor health outcomes for chronic conditions when compared with the U.S. mainland – making risk factors such as poor diet, physical inactivity and alcohol abuse major contributors to the death toll.

A delegation from the Eastern Caribbean, led by representatives from Trinidad and Tobago, will attend the GHLI Conference in June to focus on strengthening primary health care and to address the growing burden of NCDs in their region.

GHLI staff recently visited partners in Trinidad and Tobago to discuss NCD-related issues that they plan to address at the Conference. The delegation will primarily focus on how improvements to information technology systems in the public health care system that collect data, statistics and information about patients afflicted by NCDs can lead to better policy making around NCD prevention, treatment and care.  

Meetings during our visit to Port of Spain, Trinidad, brought together researchers from the University of West Indies St. Augustine and public health practitioners at the Trinidad and Tobago Ministry of Health.

Trinidad and Tobago’s involvement in the GHLI Conference is a part of a larger effort to address NCDs in the eastern Caribbean: the country is one of four participating in the Eastern Caribbean Health Outcomes Research Network (ECHORN). ECHORN is a community-based prospective cohort study geared towards expanding clinical research with racial/ethnic minority populations across four Eastern Caribbean sites: Trinidad and Tobago, Barbados, the United States Virgin Islands, and Puerto Rico.
           
The trip was effective in bringing the right parties to the table that have the interest and expertise to tackle the growing challenge of addressing NCDs in the eastern Caribbean. We look forward to continuing the discussion and strategy development at the upcoming GHLI Conference.