2008
Initial discussions and formation of a UK group to explore the potential of supporting stroke development in Ghana
Associated fundraising
2009
March - First visit to Korle Bu Teaching Hospital (KBTH) Ghana; 2 MDT workshops held; key themes to develop identified
Potential funding sources explored
December - poster at UK Stroke Forum
2010
October – visit to Ghana, with a UK physiotherapist staying until the end of December to further embed 4 initial core skills training (positioning, communication, swallow, continence)
2011
March and September - visits to Ghana; core skills training including introduction of logbooks; stroke checklist designed and implemented; data collection agreed; family education introduced
April - publication in International Journal of Stroke – Development of stroke care in Ghana
Read the Journal of Stroke piece here >>
May - publication in The Lancet – Collaboration works to improve stroke outcomes in Ghana
Read The Lancet piece here >>December - poster at UK Stroke Forum
2012
February – THET grant funding secured until November 2013
May and September - visits to Ghana; core skills training, data collection; basic manual handling equipment provided
November – Ghanaian medic, nurse and physiotherapist visit the UK for 2 weeks, spending time with Bournemouth and Portsmouth stroke services; 2 facilitated reflective sessions held
2013
January – Ghanaian nurse is runner-up in The Nursing Standard International Nurse of the Year award
June and October – visits to Ghana; core skills training; local provision of manual handling equipment; data collection; planning opening of a stroke unit
November – THET visit to KBTH; favourable report on WGSP progress
October - poster at International Allied Health Professionals Conference
2014
January – KBTH stroke unit opened
January and April - visits to Ghana; core skills training; support for stroke unit processes development and implementation; data collection
October – THET funding secured until April 2017
2015
February, March, May and October – visits to Ghana; agreed to develop further 4 core skills (mood, functional independence, stroke prevention, and discharge planning); KBTH stroke unit vision statement agreed; leadership quality improvement development sessions with Ghanaian leads to promote sustainability; data collection; laptops provided to KBTH team
March - poster at Wessex Improving Global Health conference
September – 2 nurses and a physiotherapist visit the UK from Ghana for 3 weeks, spending time with Bournemouth and Bath stroke services
2016
January, June and October – visits to Ghana; core skills & leadership training; 2-year stroke unit celebration event; high quality care statements developed; data collection
November – Ghanaian nurse presents at the West African Critical Care conference
November – Ghanaian consultant and nurse visit UK to attend the UK Stroke Forum
Presentations of leadership development in Ghana at UK Joining Forces regional stroke conference (June), THET conference (October), and UK Stroke Forum (December) conferences
Collaboration with Health Education Wessex to recruit two Improving Global Health Fellows
2017
January and April - visits to Ghana; core skills & leadership training, celebration event for completion of THET funded project cycle; data collection
Improving Global Health Fellows (nurse and physiotherapist) complete an 8-week placement at KBTH between January and March to further embed core skills
February - Ghanaian consultant presents on sustainability to the Health Partnership Symposium in Tanzania
May – poster at European Stroke Organisation Conference
November- WGSP team are finalists at the prestigious Health Service Journal Awards
November - further Health Partnership Scheme grant application successful securing a further 13 months of collaboration, with a focus on training link professionals in two additional hospitals in Accra
November - publication in the South Sudan Medical Journal
Read the South Sudan Medical Journal piece here >>
2018
January, May and October – visits to Ghana; core skills and leadership training including dissemination to Ridge and La hospitals in Accra; basic manual handling and positioning equipment provided to Ridge and La; data collection
June - UK stroke partnerships sharing event
December – Stroke in LMICs UK networking event at UK Stroke Forum
2019
10-year celebration event – virtual link between UK and KBTH with timeline and facilitated reflections
2020
Initial discussions with Edward Francis Small Teaching Hospital (EFSTH) to set up new partnership in The Gambia; lead clinicians at EFSTH identified; key objectives identified; data collection agreed
2021
Hampshire Hospitals – University of Winchester Global Health Hub established with WGSP as core member
November - virtual workshop with EFSTH covering Gambian stroke data review, swallow and positioning core skills training
2022
February – WGSP hosts World Stroke Academy webinar on Developing Stroke Care in West Africa, including representation from Ghanian and UK teams
Link here >>
June – publication in the West African Journal of Medicine
Read the West African Journal piece here >>
June – virtual ESFTH walkaround for WGSP UK team hosted by EFSTH
September – further THET funding secured for 6-month initial project phase with EFSTH in The Gambia, focus on diaspora volunteer involvement; publication in Lancet Neurology
Read the Lancet Neurology piece here >>
October – first UK team visit to The Gambia; core skills training; data collection links between KBTH and EFSTH teams initialised
December - virtual core skills workshop held with EFSTH team
2023
January - visit to The Gambia; core skills training; data collection; laptops and WiFi cards provided
Regular virtual project planning meetings between EFSTH and UK team established
MDT virtual education programme established with EFSTH MDT teaching including core skills and stroke medical updates
July – WGSP hosts second World Stroke Academy webinar on core skills training and dissemination, including representatives from Ghanaian, Gambian and UK teams; attended by over 300 participants from 70 countries
July – Letter of agreement signed between WGSP and University of Zambia / University Teaching Hospital (UNZA / UTH) outlining informal supportive relationship
September – KBTH nursing team provide virtual support to Zambian nurses training to open the first stroke unit in Zambia, facilitated by UK team