Daniel Opoku Agyemang

During my national service with the Ghana Health Service (GHS), I had the opportunity to engage with public health nurses while I worked in the community.

It was through these collaborative efforts, such as delivering health educational talks in schools and antenatal clinics, that I began to grasp the concept and intricate facets of public health. During one of these visits I had an epiphany that I wanted to be a public health professional. I desired a more impactful role than my current position allowed.

I had heard about Ensign Global College, from a colleague so I decided to pursue admission. On the day of the interview, when the “trotro” I was in pulled in front of the school, I was astounded by the elegance and beauty of the campus and its pristine edifice. I was awe-inspired! I had never seen such a beautiful campus. My admission to Ensign Global College proved to be a transformative experience. It was a journey that broadened my understanding of the grand spectrum and nuanced realm of public health.

The faculty at Ensign Global College exhibited a wealth of expertise in both local and international public health issues. This fostered a conducive atmosphere for students to excel. As an individual who had limited exposure to public health, Ensign Global College was the perfect niche for me.

The seasoned faculty made it a safe and perfect place for learning, accommodating students of diverse backgrounds. Furthermore, Ensign Global College also had a huge presence in the community. Their commitment to public health extended beyond it’s academic confines. Ensign Global College actively organized and participated in community-based public health events to raise awareness in the Lower Manya Krobo Municipality.

One of the initiatives which was undertaken by the school was the flagship Health 2 Go (H2Go) project, a collaborative effort between the University of Utah, EGC, and the Lower Manya Health Directorate of the Ghana Health Service. The aim of the project is to address health disparities in under-resourced communities in the municipality, with an emphasis on reducing maternal and child morbidity and mortality.

The project afforded me the opportunity to contribute as a research assistant! My responsibilities were data collection, writing monthly reports, organizing refresher training for the community-based agents, and offering on-field supportive supervision with our nurses.

The boots-on-the-ground experience I gained from the H2Go project brought to my foreknowledge the pragmatic nature of public health. As a research assistant, I navigated challenging conditions such as poor road networks in these under-resourced communities, sometimes necessitating physical efforts to push our stuck vehicle from the mud. Very often, we ended up with mud all over our clothes. Those were fun times (laughs). Ensign Global College instilled in me that passion and drive to ensure our communities are safe and healthy, hence, these adversities underscored my commitment for H2Go public health intervention.

Through my experiences with Ensign Global College, I was inspired to contribute to public health more meaningfully on a larger scale. I knew the path I had to take. I resolved to pursue doctoral studies in public health. In 2018, a year after I graduated from Ensign Global College, I secured admission to the University of Utah for advanced studies in public health. Upon my admission, my journey began with a role as a teaching assistant (TA) for graduate-level biostatistics, and subsequently instructing the class.

I welcomed the challenge as the robust foundation in biostatistics and epidemiology laid at Ensign Global College proved pivotal. I successfully revamped the biostatistics lab sessions where I taught students how to use STATA for their analysis. The highlight of my doctoral studies was when I was awarded an administrative supplement grant to study how social networks mediates the relationship between opioid misuse and suicide attempt among Native American youth.

Presently, I am an infectious disease analytic epidemiologist at the Salt Lake County Health Department. My role involves collaborating with partners to create and leverage innovative solutions to drive evidence-based decisions, managing a variety of disparate data systems, conducting high-level analysis of public health communicable disease data, providing interpretation of findings, and disseminating information through reports, dashboards, and visualizations.

I am proud to be an Ensonian! The training and experiences I gained from this highly esteemed institution continue to shape my professional endeavors and I reflect upon the institution with a sense of pride and gratitude!