On February 8, NYU Accra hosted a Symposium on Chronic Kidney Disease. Working with NYU College of Public Health, the symposium brought together scholars and researchers from the NYU community, the NYU School of Public Health, University of Ghana, Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital, Ghana’s Ministry of Health, Ghana Health Services, Midwives and Nurses Council of Ghana, the Ghana College of Physicians and Surgeons as well as public health practitioners to deliberate on the prevalence of chronic kidney disease.
The vision for the symposium was to focus on the social, cultural, and public health aspects of the growing burden of chronic kidney disease in Ghana and West Africa. It has been suggested that the increase in the incidence of this disease is due to untreated hypertension and some lifestyle choices. All this sounds frightening considering the local context of limited availability and enormous expense of dialysis – the current mode of treatment for kidney failure which currently plagues about 10-15% of people with high blood pressure in Ghana. NYU Accra has a tradition of local and engagement and the question NYU Accra posed was: How can NYU, a global university with a presence in Ghana, assist in reducing the rate of incidence and in finding alternative treatment options if there are any? Particularly, how can we put heads together to understand the social determinants of this growing burden, its impact on families, the relevance of health-seeking behaviors as well as the role of culture in understanding the growing burden of this disease?
The awareness of local needs and a desire for constructive engagement was the foundation for this symposium, but it also allowed diverse NYU faculty to build relationships with each other as well as with local peers. NYU faculty in the College of Global Public Health and the School of Medicine have been involved in research and training of local medical staff and faculty in West Africa, particularly in Ghana, for several years. This event leveraged their existing networks and strengthened those relationships. It also allowed the second cohort of Cross Continental MPH students from the College of Global Public Health currently at NYU Accra and the local NYU Accra public health faculty to deepen their connections and strengthen their networks.
The symposium involved a full day of discussion and the dynamic exchange of ideas. The participants found it to be a great success.
CHRONIC KIDNEY DISEASE SYMPOSIUM
Agenda
Thursday 8th February 2018
8:30am – 3:30pm
J.H.K. Nketia Hall,
Institute of African Studies, University of Ghana, Legon
8:30 – 9:00am
Arrival and Registration
9:00am
Opening Prayer
9:05 – 9:30am
Welcome, Introductions
PROF. AKOSUA ANYIDOHO (Director, NYU Accra)
Purpose of Meeting, Goals and Objectives
PROF. OLUGBENGA OGEDEGBE (Global health/Population Health, NYU)
Overview of non-communicable disease burden, including but not limited to chronic kidney disease, in Ghana and in Sub-Saharan Africa. Understand the human experience, the critical issues for population health, and the professional and societal needs to define and advance new approaches here.
Moderators:
DR. SARI SOGHOIAN
(Emergency Medicine, NYU/KBTH)
DR. VINCENT BOIMA (Nephrology, UGSMD/KBTH)
Presentations:
PATIENT PANEL – WHAT IS IT LIKE TO LIVE WITH RENAL FAILURE?
CLINICIAN PANEL – WHAT DO NURSES AND DOCTORS EXPERIENCE?
Topics for Larger Group Discussion:
§ What is the health system and societal burden of CKD?
§ What are the consequences for individuals, families, communities and institutions?
§ What are the challenges in developing diagnostic and treatment plans?
10:45 -11:00am
TEA BREAK
9:30 -10:45am
HEAR THE STORIES: PERSONAL AND PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCES OF CKD MANAGEMENT IN GHANA
Purpose: Describe the impact of the CKD crisis on health and healthcare in Ghana from patient and hospital healthcare workers’ perspectives.
11:00 -12:30am
DISCUSS THE MAJOR ISSUES: WHAT ARE THE KEY CHALLENGES THAT COUNTRIES IN SUB-SAHARAN AFRICA ARE FACING AS THE PREVALENCE OF CKD INCREASES?
Purpose: Analyze current challenges and strategies from broader existential, organizational, and public health perspectives.
2:00pm – 3:15pm
LOOKING FORWARD: What can we, as a multidisciplinary group of stakeholders, do to strengthen health and healthcare systems for CKD management?
Purpose: Foster discussion on short and longer term outcomes, objectives, and strategies
Moderators:
PROF. AMA DE-GRAFT AIKINS
(Population Health, UG)
PROF. OLUGBENGA OGEDEGBE (Global health/Population Health, NYU)
Presentations:
DR. KAJIRU KILONZO (Nephrology, KCMC, Tanzania)
DR. CHARLOTTE OSAFO (Nephrology, UGSMD/KBTH)
DR. KAREN YEATES
(Nephrology, Queen’s University, Canada)
Topics for Larger Group Discussion:
§ What are the strategies to improve prevention, detection, and management of CKD?
§ What ethical and operational concerns need be considered?
§ How have the financial and policy implications and debates been developed?
12:30pm – 2pm
LUNCH
Moderators:
PROF. LEWIS GOLDFRANK
(Emergency Medicine, NYU)
PROF. C.C. MATE-KOLE (PSYCHOLOGY, UGSMD/KBTH)
Topics for Larger Group Discussion:
§ What is most needed now to advance CKD management and health in Ghana?
§ What can be done to enhance early detection and risk mitigation in the population?
§ What can be done to enhance quality of life for patients, and their families, who have progressive and/or late stage disease?
3:15pm – 3:30pm
Concluding Remarks
Closing Prayer