Your role as an intern or a volunteer
This internship is ideal for anyone who wants to see
medicine in practice. You’ll get first-hand experience of working in a
hospital in a developing country.
You can use this internship to
add work experience to your resume before applying to medical school.
You can also talk about all you saw, learned, and how you overcame
challenges during interviews or in application essays. It’s also a great
way to explore different departments within a large hospital. This is
especially useful if you’re a medical student deciding on a
specialization.
Remember that you’ll be shadowing doctors and
nurses in a busy medical environment. It’s important to be proactive,
ask questions, and demonstrate initiative. This will ensure that you
develop a good relationship with the staff, and that you learn as much
as possible during your medical placement in Ghana.
Our medical
internship in Ghana runs throughout the year, and you can join at any
time from a minimum of 2 weeks. We encourage you to stay longer, so you
can see and learn more.
Working under the supervision of medical professionals, you will:
Join doctors and nurses on their daily patient rounds
You
will shadow doctors and nurses on their daily rounds. They’ll teach you
about Ghana’s prevalent diseases, their diagnoses, management, and
treatment. You should be prepared to to encounter patients who suffer
from diseases and conditions that you don’t see at home, such as Malaria
and Typhoid.
During your time as a medical intern in Ghana,
you’ll also spend some time in different departments of a large regional
hospital. This will give you insight into various specializations and
could help you choose your own later in your studies.
Do health checks during community outreaches
In
Ghana, many rural and disadvantaged areas lack access to healthcare
services. Most people cannot afford to travel to clinics or pay to see a
doctor. We organize regular outreaches, where you get involved with
tasks like:
- Treat wounds and ringworm infections at schools
- Do health checks in rural communities, focusing on measuring blood pressure and blood sugar levels, and run free malaria tests
This is important work, that gives you the chance to help others while learning and using basic medical skills.
Take part in health education campaigns
You
will help us raise awareness about key healthcare issues around the
country. We do this by holding talks in schools, care centers, or local
communities. Typical topics will include:
- Good hygiene practices
- Malaria prevention
- Sexual education
Sexual
education is critical, as this is still considered a taboo topic in
many schools. You could also focus on healthy lifestyle choices to
prevent illnesses like heart disease and diabetes.
There are many different departments available including:
Adolescent Counselling, Community Health Education, Dentistry, Ear,
Nose and Throat (ENT), General surgery, Laboratory, Nursing, Maternity
& Midwifery, Obstetrics & Gynaecology, Ophthalmology,
Paediatrics, Pharmacology, Physical Therapy, Physiotherapy, Prenatal,
Psychology, Radiology, Ultrasound.
Participants are likely to have the opportunity to observe within
more than one division. However, it is recommended that interns spend a
minimum of one week per department.
During orientation, you will receive a full introduction to the
hospital. A staff of OGVO will lead a tour around the whole institution,
allowing you to become familiar with the hospital’s layout, and also
meet staff members within each department.
Can I use this program as part of a college or university placement?
It is certainly possible to use one of OGVO’s programs as part of your university or college placement. Project staff can sign off any paperwork required by your course tutors. OGVO regularly receives medical, childcare, psychology and nursing placement students at our projects across Ghana and we have ties with some of the leading universities.
If you’re a course tutor and would like further information about how one of OGVO’s programs could meet the placement requirements for your degree course then please contact us directly.
Location
Ghana is a peaceful and welcoming country; Ghana satisfies one's appetite for both modern and traditional life. Its wide valleys, low-lying coastal plains, and thick rainforests resound with the beat of traditional rituals, while her cities glow and vibrate with all the bustle of the modern world. The Ghanaians are the friendliest people in West Africa: warm, proud yet humble with a contagious and calming sense of funniness.
Ghana is hot. It is always hot. What’s more, it's always humid. Humidity usually lingers between 95 and 100 percent. The rainy season lasts from mid-June to mid-November - sometimes. The rain provides a little respite from the intense heat, but temperatures will still be in the mid-80s Fahrenheit. The south of the country experiences the heaviest rainfall during September.