An Introduction to Ghana and Me

I arrived in Accra, Ghana on Sunday, June 14th on a direct flight from New York City's JFK Airport with very few expectations and remarkably little luggage (at least compared to my fellow travellers all of whom seemed to have managed to pack small houses into suitcases)! I will be in Accra until July 31st--seven weeks from now--and I've brought with me a little over a week's worth of clothing, some books, and my work things. Needless to say, I hope, and expect, to return home with more than I came with, things both material and non.

Why am I here? I was sent to Accra by a professor at Harvard School of Public Health who runs a health study in the city. My professor, Allan, enlisted my help and offered me a summer internship working for the Women's Health Study of Accra counting towards my degree in Global Health and Population. The study is funded by the NIH and supported by Harvard University and the University of Ghana. In brief, I'm working with major health stakeholders in the city, determining their priorities, and constructing a series of policy briefs on topics of interest to these stakeholders following a basic and first time analysis of the data that has been collected. I will discuss my work in more detail in a future posting. For the time being, suffice it to say I am both passionate about my work and overwhelmed by it.

I haven't written until now because I've had a difficult time just absorbing all of the new sights, sounds, smells, systems, and emotions of my own. The thought of having to distill all of these experiences into a legible, intelligible posting has been simply too much. Now that I've had a week to let the newness of my surroundings, the stress of work, and the jetlag dissipate, I am hoping to squeeze time into my days to post a few thoughts and meaningful tidbits.

If there is anything you'd like to ask about, feel free, and I'll do my best to answer your questions in the form of a blog posting. Thanks for your interest, and Akwaaba!

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Akwaaba = welcome

Obruni = white person