The Provost of the College of Health and Allied Sciences, Prof. Harold Amonoo- Kuofi, has re-echoed the importance of research in the forward march of any institution.

To this end, Prof. Amonoo- Kuofi has appealed to students and health professionals to show keen interest in research so as to enrich their knowledge and provide better services to their clients.

Prof. Amonoo said this at the 6th International Conference on Surgery organised by the Department of Surgery under the College of Health and Allied Sciences for medical professionals and students.

 The Conference,spanning from November 28 to December 1, 2016, is on the theme "Optimizing Surgical Outcomes".

 The Provost, who was speaking at the opening of  the Conference, commended the leadership of the Department of Surgery for the initiative to help professionals and students to be abreast of the modern ways of surgery.

The founding Head of the Department of Surgery, Prof. Samuel A. Debrah, who presented a paper on the topic "Genesis and Maturation of a University Department", took participants through the principles and aspirations of the Department, the core activities, vision and mission statements and the Strengths,Weaknesses,Opportunities and Threats (SWOT) analysis of the Department.

For his part, the Pro-Vice-Chancellor, Prof. George K.T. Oduro, noted that health issues play crucial role in the development of any country.

According to him, no national development programme would succeed if the workforce of a country was not healthy.

"You need healthy people to support whatever initiative you need as a nation," he stressed.

Prof. Oduro challenged health professionals to educate the public on surgery.

The Pro-Vice-Chancellor indicated that the University would support any initiative that would come out from the Conference.

A lecturer at the Faculty of Surgery, University of San Diego, USA, Dr. Allison Bendtson, lauded the Department of Surgery for the initiative.

She said the Conference would deepen the existing collaboration between the Faculty and the Department.

The Conference brought together stakeholders from academia, security agencies, civil society organisations and students.