Holding the little hands: a fundraiser to provide Northern Ghana with a neonatal nurse specialist

We would like to ask your attention for this fundraiser, to improve the healthcare in the Northern part of Ghana and to help make a dream come true.

The Upper east region of Ghana does not have any doctors or nurses specialised in treating newborn baby's or prematurely born baby's. There are no neonatal intensive care doctors nor nurses. For an Urgent treatment or surgery, the baby's have to be referred to a hospital many hours away, a travel many new born babies cannot make.

Let me introduce to you Michael, whose biggest ambition is to become a neonatal specialised nurse.

"I am Michael. I was born here in Bolgatanga, Ghana. I went to nursing school, through funds of friends and the government. Now I have come to a point in my life where I would like to try to make my dream come true.

I began my career in Nursing as an RN in a small community hospital that just have their neonatal intensive care unit opened six months ago.The unit has never seen a neonatologist or a Doctor specialized in neonatology. This has really given us difficulty in handling them in some instances with our limited knowledge and recourses.

The most serious issue is that, our Nicu faces a specialist crises and a lack of caring ethos from the part of leadership hence the great need to specialize into Neonatology at the college of nurses and midwives.

I have developed a passion to specialize into neonatology to nurse them and care for them.

I want to specialize in neonatal nursing, a specialisation we do not currently have in our region. With my education, I could give back to my community and increase the knowledge and healthcare. I want to see my self as a professional with an opportunity to help change the focus of health care as I see it in my community and beyond.

The college provides a three year specialist training to nurses and midwives with affiliated courses and Clinical's in Canada and South Africa. I cannot pay for this education by myself, ever.

My goal in 3 years from now is to become an adult nurse neonatologist working with this underserved population and educating in underserved communities. I want to be fully devoted in neonatology 3 years from now putting smiles on people’s faces and help create platforms for the less-privileged in caring for their well-being.I found myself in constant admiration for that. I never forget that, Holding the little hands is a promise to one another that, for just a moment, the two of us don't have to face the world alone

I just want to give back to my community clinic ..... it is all I can do to put smiles on people face.

I hope you want to help me with that".

Many thanks for your time