The University of Florida Department of Emergency Medicine was proud to host Prof. Ahmed N. Zakariah, MD, MPM, EMBA, MPhil, FGCS, the C.E.O. of the Ghana National Ambulance Service, in January.
During his visit, Prof. Zakariah met with several key stakeholders at the University of Florida’s College of Medicine and College of Public Health and Health Professions.
Prof. Zakariah presented a Global Health Grand Rounds on ‘Decolonizing Global Health through Multilateral Partnership – A Case Study.’ He emphasized MotoMeds as an example of decolonizing global health through true collaboration amongst equal partners. Prof. Zakariah presented on MotoMeds Ghana, a joint project of the University of Florida and the Ghana National Ambulance Service, one of many assistance projects supported by the American people through the United States Agency for International Development, and by the Society for Academic Emergency Medicine.
Prof. Zakariah and Dr. Torben Becker, Director of the Section of Global Health, also presented on MotoMeds at the International Affairs Committee Meeting during the 2023 annual conference of the National Association of EMS Physicians. In the US, prehospital care systems and hospitals equally look to implement similar strategies of at-home care and community outreach projects, known as ‘community paramedicine.’ In many ways, MotoMeds serves as an example of such systems here in the U.S.