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Gynecologic Oncology Sub-Specialty Training in Ghana: A Model for Sustainable Impact on Gynecologic Cancer Care in Sub-Saharan Africa

African women have double the risk of dying from cancer than women in high-income countries. In Ghana, most women with gynecological malignancies present with advanced-stage disease when treatment is less effective. Barriers to improved cancer outcomes include the availability of cancer screening, a...

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Autores principales: Erem, Anna Sarah, Appiah-Kubi, Adu, Konney, Thomas Okpoti, Amo-Antwi, Kwabena, Bell, Sarah G., Johnson, Timothy R. B., Johnston, Carolyn, Tawiah Odoi, Alexander, Lawrence, Emma R.
Formato: Online Artículo Texto
Lenguaje:English
Publicado: Frontiers Media S.A. 2020
Materias:
Acceso en línea:https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7744480/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/33344404
http://dx.doi.org/10.3389/fpubh.2020.603391
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author Erem, Anna Sarah
Appiah-Kubi, Adu
Konney, Thomas Okpoti
Amo-Antwi, Kwabena
Bell, Sarah G.
Johnson, Timothy R. B.
Johnston, Carolyn
Tawiah Odoi, Alexander
Lawrence, Emma R.
author_facet Erem, Anna Sarah
Appiah-Kubi, Adu
Konney, Thomas Okpoti
Amo-Antwi, Kwabena
Bell, Sarah G.
Johnson, Timothy R. B.
Johnston, Carolyn
Tawiah Odoi, Alexander
Lawrence, Emma R.
author_sort Erem, Anna Sarah
collection PubMed
description African women have double the risk of dying from cancer than women in high-income countries. In Ghana, most women with gynecological malignancies present with advanced-stage disease when treatment is less effective. Barriers to improved cancer outcomes include the availability of cancer screening, affordability of treatment, and access to gynecologic oncology specialists. In response to a paucity of gynecologic oncology providers, an in-country fellowship training program was established at Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital (KATH) in 2013. Historically, Ghanaian resident physicians were sent to other countries for fellowship training and were unlikely to repatriate. The establishment of an in-country training program not only addresses the challenge of “brain drain,” but also builds local capacity in gynecologic oncology education and emphasizes culturally relevant and accessible healthcare. The four-years gynecologic oncology fellowship program at KATH was developed as part of a longitudinal multi-decade partnership between the University of Michigan and academic medical centers in Ghana. The fellowship trains obstetricians and gynecologists to provide subspecialist clinical and surgical care to patients with gynecologic malignancies. Fellows collaborate with the radiation, oncology and pathology departments, participate in monthly inter-institutional tumor board meetings, conduct research, advise on health policy issues, and train subsequent cohorts. This fellowship is representative of emerging twenty-first-century trends in which subspecialty training programs in low-income countries are strengthened by international collaborations. Providing specialized training in gynecologic oncology can help develop and maintain resources that will improve clinical outcomes for women in low-resources settings.
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spelling pubmed-77444802020-12-18 Gynecologic Oncology Sub-Specialty Training in Ghana: A Model for Sustainable Impact on Gynecologic Cancer Care in Sub-Saharan Africa Erem, Anna Sarah Appiah-Kubi, Adu Konney, Thomas Okpoti Amo-Antwi, Kwabena Bell, Sarah G. Johnson, Timothy R. B. Johnston, Carolyn Tawiah Odoi, Alexander Lawrence, Emma R. Front Public Health Public Health African women have double the risk of dying from cancer than women in high-income countries. In Ghana, most women with gynecological malignancies present with advanced-stage disease when treatment is less effective. Barriers to improved cancer outcomes include the availability of cancer screening, affordability of treatment, and access to gynecologic oncology specialists. In response to a paucity of gynecologic oncology providers, an in-country fellowship training program was established at Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital (KATH) in 2013. Historically, Ghanaian resident physicians were sent to other countries for fellowship training and were unlikely to repatriate. The establishment of an in-country training program not only addresses the challenge of “brain drain,” but also builds local capacity in gynecologic oncology education and emphasizes culturally relevant and accessible healthcare. The four-years gynecologic oncology fellowship program at KATH was developed as part of a longitudinal multi-decade partnership between the University of Michigan and academic medical centers in Ghana. The fellowship trains obstetricians and gynecologists to provide subspecialist clinical and surgical care to patients with gynecologic malignancies. Fellows collaborate with the radiation, oncology and pathology departments, participate in monthly inter-institutional tumor board meetings, conduct research, advise on health policy issues, and train subsequent cohorts. This fellowship is representative of emerging twenty-first-century trends in which subspecialty training programs in low-income countries are strengthened by international collaborations. Providing specialized training in gynecologic oncology can help develop and maintain resources that will improve clinical outcomes for women in low-resources settings. Frontiers Media S.A. 2020-12-03 /pmc/articles/PMC7744480/ /pubmed/33344404 http://dx.doi.org/10.3389/fpubh.2020.603391 Text en Copyright © 2020 Erem, Appiah-Kubi, Konney, Amo-Antwi, Bell, Johnson, Johnston, Tawiah Odoi and Lawrence. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) and the copyright owner(s) are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
spellingShingle Public Health
Erem, Anna Sarah
Appiah-Kubi, Adu
Konney, Thomas Okpoti
Amo-Antwi, Kwabena
Bell, Sarah G.
Johnson, Timothy R. B.
Johnston, Carolyn
Tawiah Odoi, Alexander
Lawrence, Emma R.
Gynecologic Oncology Sub-Specialty Training in Ghana: A Model for Sustainable Impact on Gynecologic Cancer Care in Sub-Saharan Africa
title Gynecologic Oncology Sub-Specialty Training in Ghana: A Model for Sustainable Impact on Gynecologic Cancer Care in Sub-Saharan Africa
title_full Gynecologic Oncology Sub-Specialty Training in Ghana: A Model for Sustainable Impact on Gynecologic Cancer Care in Sub-Saharan Africa
title_fullStr Gynecologic Oncology Sub-Specialty Training in Ghana: A Model for Sustainable Impact on Gynecologic Cancer Care in Sub-Saharan Africa
title_full_unstemmed Gynecologic Oncology Sub-Specialty Training in Ghana: A Model for Sustainable Impact on Gynecologic Cancer Care in Sub-Saharan Africa
title_short Gynecologic Oncology Sub-Specialty Training in Ghana: A Model for Sustainable Impact on Gynecologic Cancer Care in Sub-Saharan Africa
title_sort gynecologic oncology sub-specialty training in ghana: a model for sustainable impact on gynecologic cancer care in sub-saharan africa
topic Public Health
url https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7744480/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/33344404
http://dx.doi.org/10.3389/fpubh.2020.603391
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