Center for Translational and
International Hematology

Associate Professor
Medicine-Hematology/Oncology
sfo2@pitt.edu
View Profile

President, Sickle Cell Foundation of Ghana

Dr. Ohene-Frempong, professor of Pediatrics at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, Director Emeritus of the Comprehensive Sickle Cell Center, and President of the Sickle Cell Foundation of Ghana, is a world-renowned authority on sickle cell disease. In addition to his research focus on pulmonary complications from sickle cell disease, he pursues research and provides clinical support in his home country, Ghana, where he is considered a national hero. He founded the Sickle Cell Research and Treatment Center in Kumasi in 1992 with the first newborn screening program in Africa, which he is helping to expand nationwide. Dr. Ohene-Frempong has been involved with many committees dedicated to finding a cure for sickle cell disease, including the National Board of Directors of the Sickle Cell Disease Association of America, of which he was elected as Chairman of the Board in September 2003. The NCAA recognized Dr. Ohene-Frempong’s efforts with the Silver Anniversary Award in 2000. In 1999, he was named an inaugural inductee into the International Scholar Athlete Hall of Fame together with Arthur Ashe, Justice Byron White, Paul Robeson and others. And in November 2001, Yale honored Dr. Ohene-Frempong and eight other former athletes as inaugural recipients of the William H. W. Bush Lifetime of Leadership Award.

Scientific Director, KCCR

Dr. Owusu-Dabo joined Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology’s (KNUST) department of Community Health in October 2002 and is currently the Scientific Director for the Kumasi Centre for Collaborative Research in Tropical Medicine (KCCR). He is a Fellow of the Ghana College of Physicians, a member of West African College of Physicians, Principal Investigator of the Pan African Bioinformatics Network for H3ABionet and has also served on several review committees, including the West African Health Research Network’s scientific committee since 2010. Dr. Owusu-Dabo earned his medical degree at KNUST and his specialist professional degree in Ibadan, Nigeria. He holds an additional PhD from the University of Nottingham and his areas of expertise include Epidemiology of non-communicable disease, population genetics of pulmonary tuberculosis and Health systems research. Dr. Owusu-Dabo offers lectures on the prestigious Tropical Medicine Course of BNITM since 2010.

Department of Child Health, School of Medical Sciences, KNUST

Dr. Vivian Paintsil attended the School of Medical Sciences of the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology. She completed her training at the Red Cross War Memorial Children’s Hospital in Pediatric Oncology. Currently, she works at the Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital in Kumasi, Ghana. She is a Pediatric Oncologist and is in charge of the Pediatric Cancer Unit of the hospital. Her career goal is to obtain a Master’s in Public Health and then earn a PhD in Pediatric Oncology. Her dream is to have a foundation to take care of SCD affected children.

Department of Child Health, School of Medical Sciences, KNUST

Dr. Osei-Akoto is currently the Clinical Coordinator and Head for Sickle Cell Unit in the Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital (KATH) in Kumasi, Ghana. As the Clinical Coordinator, he directs clinical activities pertaining to KATH’s various sickle cell initiatives. He has continuously worked in the Sickle Cell Clinical Program at his hospital since 1993 and has been a major contributor to the Newborn Screening Program since 1995. He has been involved as an investigator for many of KATH’s clinical trials, particularly in the area of Malaria.

Department of Child Health, School of Medical Sciences, KNUST

Prof Daniel Ansong is a specialist paediatrician and Associate Professor in Paediatrics in Kwame Nkrumah University of science and Technology (KNUST). He is a clinical paediatric researcher with special interest in epidemiology and biostatistics. He is the international coordinator of the Diploma in Project Design and Management (DPDM)-a long distance programme offered by the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine (LSTM) in collaboration with KNUST and Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital (KATH). He holds a Diploma in Learning, Teaching and Assessing (LTA) offered by the LSTM. He is currently the Deputy Director for Research and Development of the KATH.

Dr. Ansong is a Fellow of the West African College of Physician and the Ghana College of Physicians. He is also the co-principal investigator in a phase III malaria vaccine clinical trial currently taking place in Ghana. In addition to his research interest in malaria, he is working with World Health Organization (WHO)/Africa Region (AFRO) on Paediatrics Bacterial Meningitis Surveillance Programme for which he is the Lead Clinician. In additions to conducting research he is interested in research capacity building in Ghana. Prof Ansong is the principal investigator and the lead coordinator of the Barekuma Community Collaborative Programme (BCCDP). A community based educational, agricultural, water and health research collaboration with School of Medical Sciences-KNUST, University of Utah-USA and KATH. He has spent over two decade in the care of Sickle Cell disease patients and currently a key investigator in the Organ Damage in Sickle Cell Disease (ORDIS) Study .

Head, Department of Hematology
Director, Center for Clinical Genetics
Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital, Accra, Ghana

Dr. Olayemi is Head of the Department of Hematology at the Korle Bu Teaching Hospital in Accra, Ghana. Korle Bu is the premier health care facility in Ghana, the only tertiary hospital in the southern part of Ghana, and the teaching hospital of the University of Ghana Medical School. He oversees the only organized adult SCD clinic in the city, established in 1974, and with over 10,000 outpatient visits every year. 

As a Hematologist at the Korle Bu Teaching Hospital, Dr. Benneh has the unique opportunity to deliver comprehensive care to sickle cell patients by utilizing her expertise in clinical and laboratory diagnoses. For over 12 years, she has managed adult sickle cell patients in both acutely ill and steady states. This has driven her passion in advocating for sickle cell disease by being a spokesperson on national television networks during Ghana’s World Sickle Cell Day Celebrations. She has been invited to attend national and international conferences where she has established local and international ties. Her recent collaboration with the CTIH resulted in the first study of its kind showing the prevalence of relative hypertension in Adult Ghanaians with Sickle Cell Disease.

Principal Medical Officer
Center for Clinical Genetics

Mary Akua Ampomah is a Clinical Psychologist at the Ghana Institute of Clinical Genetics where the adolescent and adult SCD clinic is located. She has had the opportunity to be a part-time lecturer at the Department of Psychology of the University of Ghana, Legon and currently teaching at the Regent University of Science and Technology. She is pursuing a PhD in Clinical Psychology at the University of Ghana, Legon. Her career objective is to seek a challenging opportunity to utilize her professional and educational experiences in academia and participate in innovative teaching, clinical and community-based research. Mary is particularly interested in the psychological wellbeing and quality of life of SCD patients. She is also interested in the neuropsychology of SCD patients in Ghana. She is currently collaborating with Sickle Cell Foundation Ghana on their GENECIS tour which aims at implementing a culturally sensitive and evidence-based SCD counselling in Ghana.

Dr Kofi Anie is a Consultant Psychologist at London North West Healthcare NHS Trust, and Psychology Service Lead for children and adults with sickle cell disease and thalassaemia. He is also an Honorary Clinical Senior Lecturer at Imperial College London, School of Public Health. He trained at the University of Surrey and University of London, and began his professional career at King’s College Hospital, London where he pioneered psychological interventions for children with sickle cell disease. He was later a Research Fellow at St George’s University of London with most of his work in chronic illness and pain, including sickle cell disease. He was appointed to his current position in 1998. He is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Medicine and Associate Fellow of the British Psychological Society; his other professional affiliations include the British Association of Behavioural and Cognitive Psychotherapies, and American Psychological Association. Dr Anie’s research interests include Sickle Cell Pain, Quality of Life, Adherence to Treatment, and Mobile Technology in Patient Self-Management. He is currently a collaborator with the Center for Translational and International Hematology on the Organ Damage in Sickle Cell Disease (ORDISS) Study in Ghana.