Korle-Bu Foundation and The University of Ghana Meet to Discuss Plans Regarding the Establishment of a Neuroscience Graduate Research Program

The Korle-Bu Neuroscience Foundation, located in Vancouver Canada, is a registered charity with a global reach. Its main focus is to provide medical support for individuals in Ghana and West Africa who are suffering from brain injuries and other neurological diseases. The Foundation is currently establishing a Neuroscience Centre of Excellence in Accra, Ghana. Although, the clinical component will be the main focus of the proposed Korle-Bu Neuroscience Centre of Excellence; research is integral to the development of clinical knowledge, to the acquisition of new discoveries, and to the production of trained physicians and scientists.

The faculty members in the Anatomy Department at the University of Ghana are well trained in neuroscience, however, in order to create a sustainable research program there is an additional need for laboratory equipment, consultation regarding the development of neuroscience labs, assistance in the training of students in specific research techniques, and assistance with the development of certain components of the neuroscience curriculum. The neuroscience program will be designed by faculty at the University of Ghana and assistance will be provided when indicated to the University of Ghana, by members of the Integrative Neuroscience program at the McGill University, by associates at the Montreal Neurological Institute, and by faculty in the Neuroscience Department at the University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston. The African Scientific Institute (ASI) will play a significant role in providing consultation regarding clinical and research laboratory development.

The Foundation believes that the continued development of neuroscience research at the University of Ghana will make an important contribution to neuroscience research in the entire continent of Africa, which will expand to an international level.

Korle-Bu Neuroscience Foundation is a registered charity with a global reach. KBNF is focused on providing medical support for brain and spinal injuries and diseases to the people of Ghana and West Africa. Started in 2000 by Vancouver-based neuroscience nurse Marj Ratel, KBNF is a volunteer-based organization. KBNF is one of the few charitable organizations in the world that is focused on providing both immediate and lifesaving medical support, with a long-term infrastructure vision. For more information, please visit www.KBNF.org.

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