PUBLIC HEALTH IN RURAL GHANA
The Presbyterian Hospital Donkorkrom is the only hospital in the Afram Plains North District providing health care to an area over 5000 km² with more than 100,000 inhabitants. The hospital has a total of seventy-four beds, five wards, and two operating theaters and is run by only two doctors. In perspective, the rural state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern (Germany) is considered to have a high medical shortage with 450 doctors per 100,000 inhabitants. The numbers speak for themselves and give medical under-supply a whole new meaning. During our Medical Internship, we actually experienced firsthand, the working conditions of rural doctors in Ghana. In particular, there is a lack of essential equipment that those of us from developed countries take for granted. Despite the staff’s medical competence, their hands are often tied due to financial and technical reasons. Because of these experiences, we decided to establish an organization to promote public health in Ghana’s Eastern Region.
