College of Health to become a university
The College of Health and Well-Being located at Kintampo in the Brong Ahafo Region is vying to become a research and degree-awarding university, as well as an international resource centre for medical training and operational research.
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The institution, which was established in 1969 by the Ministry of Health initially as a Rural Health Training School has metamorphosed into the College of Health and Well-Being.
It is also aspiring to become a well resourced world-class medical institution devoted to research into tropical diseases as its contribution to the ever-changing global health needs.
In furtherance of the achievement of its aims, management of the institution has acquired 3,000 acres of land at Kintampo for expansion of the institution’s facilities into a university status.
The school trains multi-purpose middle level health professionals for the health sector. Till date, it is the only school of its kind in the country.
The college has as its motto, “Educating for service”, and has a guiding principle to develop human resource capable of providing health services that are simple in operation, extensive in scope, economic in cost yet efficient.
The college presently offers 14 course programmes that are targeted at current practices and policies in developing health systems in the country.
Mission
The mission of the college is to educate and train a well-motivated, knowledgeable and skilful health professional who is capable of providing quality services to all people in all settings, especially in remote and under-served communities.
Vision and core values
The vision of the college is to become a world-class health university that responds to the health needs of communities.
It has its core values as service to humanity, commitment to duty, respect for human life, self-discipline, teamwork, crave for excellence, creativity and collaboration.
Training sites
The college has training sites spread all over the country in hospitals, health centres and clinics, and in urban and rural communities.
Way forward
According to the Rector of the College of Health and Well-Being, Dr E.T. Adjase, the college was now preparing for a visit by the National Accreditation Board for its status as a government-approved and supported university college.
He said management would do all it could to protect the 3,000 acres of additional land it had acquired for its expansion project. He said the college was also working hard to recruit more qualified staff.
Challenges
Dr Adjase said in spite of the many successes chalked up by the college, it faced some challenges, including the means to manage the changing circumstances of the college, ability to preserve its core values and how to get the Ghana Education Trust Fund (GETFund) to fund projects for the college’s accelerated development.
He mentioned also the difficulty in attracting private sector investors to Kintampo to partner the college for infrastructural development.
Kintampo
Kintampo is a historical town in the transitional ecological zone of Ghana and served as a base for the West Africa Royal Force in the colonial days.
The College of Health and Well-Being has played and still continues to play an important role in health education and research.