The Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), Kumasi, and Yale School of Nursing in the United States of America (USA) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to establish a collaborative partnership to enhance the pursuit of universal health coverage in Africa. The signing ceremony took place on Tuesday, 6th June 2023, at the Council Chamber of the University.

 

 

Representing the team from Yale, Professor Holly Powell Kennedy, the Dean and Helen Vaney Professor of Midwifery at Yale School of Nursing, expressed her enthusiasm for initiating this partnership with KNUST. She revealed that the team had been working diligently for the past two years to make this collaboration a reality. Professor Kennedy further emphasised the commitment of Yale to maintaining such relationships to enhance healthcare on a global scale. She expressed her eagerness to learn and explore new possibilities through this collaboration and commended Dr. Edward Appiah Boateng and Professor (Mrs.) Veronica Millicent Dzomeku for their continuous efforts in helping to establish this partnership.

 

 

On behalf of the Vice-Chancellor, Professor Ellis Owusu-Dabo, the Pro Vice-Chancellor of KNUST, expressed his excitement about the partnership between the two institutions. He described the collaboration as timely and mutually beneficial. He noted that KNUST will not relent on the image it has built for itself as the best university in the world in terms of quality education (SDG 4), adding that the partnership built will further help to build the image and improve the Department of Nursing in both institutions. He hoped that the relationship would help create opportunities for joint projects, knowledge exchange, and further advancements in global healthcare that could transcend to other departments in the University.

Professor Daniel Yaw Addai Duah, the Dean of the International Programmes Office (IPO), underscored the potential of the partnership to serve as a springboard for joint research initiatives in global healthcare. He anticipated exchange programmes that would enable faculty and staff to learn from each other through the collaboration between both institutions. He also hoped for a lasting relationship between KNUST and Yale.

The Dean of the Faculty of Allied Health Sciences, Professor (Mrs.) Veronica Millicent Dzomeku, expressed her excitement about this collaboration, highlighting the aspiration of the Department to advance programmes such as Master of Philosophy (MPhil) in Midwifery and Oncology Nursing.

Professor Kennedy was accompanied by Sohani Sirdeshmukh, Programme Manager of the Office of Global Affairs and Planetary Health, and Linda Ghampson, Lecturer in Simulation at Yale School of Nursing and Mr. Emmanuel Mankattah, Researcher from Educational Assessments and Research Centre (EARC).

Also present at the meeting were Mrs. Margaret Afi Dzisi, Deputy Registrar of Academic Affairs; Professor Christian Agyare, Provost of the College of Health Sciences; Professor (Mrs.) Victoria Bubunyo Bam, Head of Department of Nursing; Dr. Daniel Norris Bekoe, University Relations Officer; and Dr. Edward Appiah Boateng, Senior Lecturer at the Department of Nursing.