From the Ground Up
"The only way to make these programs work is to be on the ground..."
"The only way to make these programs work is to be on the ground..."
From his window at UNC Project-Malawi, Satish Gopal, MD, MPH, has a clear view of the cancer hospital under construction on the campus of Kamuzu Central Hospital. The metaphor isn’t lost on him or anyone else there.
For the past five years, since moving his family to Malawi, Gopal has worked with many partners to build a cancer care infrastructure in this country. First, he set out to convince international partners that the rising cancer burden in sub-Saharan Africa represents the next great global health crisis. Then, he set out to show that people with cancer could be treated in this low-resource environment. He’s still progressing on that front, but the hospital coming out of the ground just outside his window is a sign of just how far the program has come.
“The only way to make these programs work is to be on the ground, actively partnering, identifying research priorities, identifying the most promising young clinicians and investigators and helping them propel their careers forward,” Gopal said.
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This is story number 18 in the Carolina Stories 225th Anniversary Edition magazine.
