The Navrongo Health Research Centre (NHRC) made a significant representation at the 2025 Annual Health Research Dissemination Forum, organized by the Research and Development Division (RDD) of the Ghana Health Service from August 12–14, 2025, at the Health Promotion Division, Korle-Bu, Accra.

The event was held under the theme “Research for Universal Health Coverage (UHC): Innovations and Sustainability”, the three-day forum brought together researchers, policymakers, and health professionals to share cutting-edge evidence aimed at improving health systems and accelerating Ghana’s progress towards UHC.

The Director of the Research and Development Division, Dr. Abraham Oduro in a welcome statement acknowledged and expressed appreciation to the representatives of the various institutions, health research centres and the entire Ghana Health Service for honoring the event. He Stated that the main aim of the forum is to promote dialogue, collaboration and learning towards the attainment of the universal health coverage objective. He added that the RDD is ready to work with all institutions towards achieving UHC and urged everyone to participate fully in the forum.

The Director of the Research and Development Division, Dr. Abraham Oduro in a welcome statement acknowledged and expressed appreciation to the representatives of the various institutions, health research centres and the entire Ghana Health Service for honoring the event. He Stated that the main aim of the forum is to promote dialogue, collaboration and learning towards the attainment of the universal health coverage objective. He added that the RDD is ready to work with all institutions towards achieving UHC and urged everyone to participate fully in the forum.

The goal of Universal Health Coverage is to ensure that all individuals have access to a full range of health services anytime, anywhere regardless of their social, economic and geographical limitations. Over the yeas since the introduction of the UHC concept, Ghana has made significant strides towards achieving UHC by the implementation of the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) in 2013 which covers over 50 percent of the total population of the country to reduce financial constraints in accessing healthcare. Another initiative that marks the progress in the attaining the UHC goal is the Community Health Planning Systems (CHPS) concept which expands access to care to resource limited and remote settings.

The forum brought together policy makers, researchers, program managers, health service providers, health professionals and institutions central to the UHC concept to share findings and evidence to guide the policies and innovations aimed at achieving universal coverage in Ghana.

Over the 3 days of the forum, discussions centered around maternal, neonatal and child health, Environmental Health, Non-communicable diseases research, Nutrition, Health Systems, Ethics in Health Research, Network of Practice, Biomedical Health Research and Infectious Diseases research.

NHRC researchers were among the key contributors, presenting critical findings across environmental health, biomedical research, vaccination, health systems, and infectious disease control. A total of 6 oral presentations and 9 poster presentations highlighting various health research activities were presented by researchers from the NHRC.

• Thomas Adariya presented on “Household Cooking Fuels and Closed Cooking Environment Are Associated with Blood Pressure Indices Among Northern Rural Ghanaian Adults”. His findings underscored the adverse cardiovascular health effects linked to the use of biomass fuels and poorly ventilated cooking spaces, a major public health concern in rural Ghana.

• Bernice Ama Baako shared results from a One Health study titled “Xeno Surveillance to Inform Risk and Assess Drivers of Zoonotic and Vector-Borne Diseases Spillover in Northern Ghana”. Her presentation highlighted the potential of integrated surveillance systems in predicting and preventing zoonotic disease outbreaks in the region.

• Anthony Hama delivered two significant presentations. The first, “BRAVE: Background Rates of Adverse Events for Vaccine Evaluation in Africa”, emphasized the importance of baseline safety data in assessing new vaccines. He also presented findings from the “African Covid-19 Vaccine Safety Surveillance (Acvass)” initiative, which is strengthening post-vaccine monitoring and safety assessment across the continent.

• Fabian S. Achana presented on “Designing and Implementing Context-Specific Mental Health Interventions for Young People: A Situation Analysis of Mental Health Services in Two Districts in the Upper East Region”. His research shed light on the gaps in adolescent mental health services and proposed locally adaptable interventions.

• Cecilia Suglat Bugbillah examined infectious disease threats in her presentation, “Carriage of Meningeal Pathogens in a Meningitis Endemic Region”. Her findings provided critical insights into meningitis carriage patterns and their implications for outbreak preparedness in northern Ghana.

• Jeremiah Kwame Ganyo presented on “Pneumococcal Antibody Responses in the Post-PCV13 Era in the Upper East Region of Ghana”. His study offered valuable evidence on vaccine-induced immunity and its role in guiding future pneumococcal disease prevention strategies.

The NHRC’s contributions at the forum reinforced the Centre’s pivotal role in generating evidence to inform health policy and practice in Ghana and beyond. From addressing the health effects of environmental exposures to advancing vaccine safety surveillance and improving adolescent mental health, NHRC researchers continue to provide evidence – based health research in tackling pressing public health challenges.

The 2025 Dissemination Forum concluded with a call for sustained collaboration between researchers, policymakers, and development partners to ensure that innovations in health research translate into sustainable solutions for achieving universal health coverage in Ghana.