Prof. John Owusu Gyapong
The University of Health and Allied Sciences (UHAS) in the Volta Region has established two new schools; the School of Dentistry (SOD) and the School of Sports and Exercise Medicine (SOSEM).
The School of Dentistry which will soon admit pioneering students will be incubated in the School of Medicine. The Ho Teaching Hospital will be used to train the students in Dentistry.
The School of Sports and Exercise Medicine which is being incubated in the School of Allied Health Sciences (SAHS) has already admitted 13 pioneer students for the 2020/2021 academic year.
As part of their orientation, a symposium was organised for them at the Accra Sports Stadium in partnership with the National Sports Authority and the Local Organising Committee (LOC) of the 2023 African Games.
This brings to eight, the schools established by the university since its inception in 2011.
Already, UHAS has the School of School of Allied Health Sciences, School of Basic and Biomedical Sciences, School of Medicine, School of Nursing and Midwifery, School of Pharmacy and School of Public Health.
The Vice-Chancellor, Prof. John Owusu Gyapong, announced this at the fourth session of the fifth congregation of the university over the weekend.
The congregation, which saw 543 students graduating, was held under strict COVID-19 safety protocols in the Cedi Auditorium on the main campus at Sokode-Lokoe near Ho.
With a student population of about 5,717, the 543 graduates included three postgraduate degrees (masters) in Medical Imaging and 29 Bachelor’s degrees from the School of Allied Health Sciences.
The School of Public Health awarded 21 postgraduate degrees and 154 Bachelor’s degrees in disease control, environmental health, nutrition, health information, promotion and mental health nursing.
The School of Nursing and Midwifery awarded three postgraduate degrees and graduated 110 midwives, 156 nurses and 66 public health nurses with Bachelor’s degrees while the School of Medicine awarded one Bachelor’s Degree in Physician Assistantship.
The Vice-Chancellor noted that the new Bachelor of Orthotics and Prosthetics (O&P) programme run by the School of Allied Health Sciences is the first of its kind in sub-Saharan Africa.
Prof. Elsie Effah Kaufmann, who is on sabbatical from the University of Ghana, has joined UHAS to help develop the programme.
The Chairman of the Council, Supreme Court judge, Justice Jones M. Dotse, observed that the institution was “moving in the right direction” as it has made major strides within a short period with limited resources.
He added that the research exploits of UHAS have shot it into global recognition as a world-class institution and was hopeful that the China funded Phase Two project for the university would be completed on schedule to consolidate the gains.
That notwithstanding, Justice Dotse lamented about the deplorable nature of the roads within and around the campus and the many other abandoned projects of the institution, particularly the central laboratory and the Hohoe Campus.
The Energy Minister who until recently was the Education Minister, Dr. Matthew Opoku Prempeh, who was a special guest, assured that UHAS was a key component of the healthcare system in Ghana and even Africa.
To this end, he said the government would do all it can to make it one of the best health-related institutions in the world.
Dr. Anarfi Asamoa-Baah, Presidential Coordinator of the government’s COVID-19 Response, who received an Honorary Degree, advised the graduands to believe in themselves and strive to be the best.
From Fred Duodu, Ho