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The School of Public Health of the University of Ghana has launched its 30th anniversary with plans to enhance its reputation to become an internationally recognised institution.
It also intends to use the year-long celebration to establish a solid financial base through the development of short courses and programmes to enhance income generation for a sound financial footing for the school.
The Founding Dean of the school, Professor Isabella A. Quakyi, said the school was mission-driven and that the achievements of the past would be consolidated, while strategic plans were made on its future developments.
The anniversary, which was launched in Accra, was on the theme: “Three decades of public health education, research, and community service: Straightening the global health system”.
Prof. Quakyi said the school had not relented in research work as it had embarked on numerous research collaborations with local and international institutions, some of which had supported the school to expand infrastructure and also diversify its training programmes and modules.
She said the school had developed new course modules to reflect the current orientation and departmental course objectives. The founding dean added that syllabi had been developed for all courses in most departments, while teaching modules were currently being collated in most of the departments.
Touching on research funds, Prof. Quakyi said the school had developed research agenda targeting some of the major health issues facing the country and that each department was undertaking evidence-based research that would contribute to national health policy formulation.
She also said the school was developing field sites to reflect the goals and future directions of the training.
The Pro Vice-Chancellor of Academic and Student Affairs, UG, Prof. Gordon Awandare, cited the tremendous progress and success the faculty and students had chalked up in their various roles.
“Most importantly, the school is one of the flagship units in the university if you consider research by all the decades, whether publications, grants or funds that have been mobilised.
The school is always among the top and this has been consistent over the past 30 years,” he said, adding that there was a lot to celebrate.
The School of Public Health was established in 1994 as a semi-autonomous institution and incorporated into the College of Health Sciences in January, 2000. It has evolved into six departments and elevated to Deanship (faculty) status.
So far, the school has produced 1,777 graduates and has also earmarked the construction of an additional wing which is in progress and set to be completed soon.
