Read the text below and after answer questions 28 and 29:

He converted a van into a mobile medical clinic. Now, he’s bringing care to thousands in rural Ghana

By Meg Dunn, CNN

Published 6:48 AM EDT, Fri August 11, 2023

Somerset, NJ

CNN — Growing up in a small village in southern Ghana, Osei Boateng watched many of his family members and neighbors struggle to access basic health care. In many regions of the country, it can take hours to get to the nearest hospital.

Boateng said many people lost their lives due to preventable or treatable diseases. His grandmother and aunt were among them. “My grandmother was a very big part of my life,” said Boateng, 28. “It was very hard when we lost her, and it was due to something that could have been easily prevented. That is the painful part of it.”

The average life expectancy in Ghana is 64 years old, and the most common causes of death are largely treatable conditions, such as malaria, stroke, and respiratory infections. Feeling an urgent call to help, Boateng decided he would make it his life’s mission to bring health care to remote communities in Ghana. He worked hard in school and got a scholarship to study biology at Cornell University in the US. “I was learning a lot about hypertension and diabetes and things that people back home didn’t know they could die from,” said Boateng, who ultimately earned his master’s in Healthcare Administration. “Early screening wasn’t an option for us.”

He realized that education and preventative health care was lacking in many remote areas of Ghana. Yet telling people to go to the doctor wasn’t the answer. “I realized that these people don’t have the luxury of time,” Boateng said. “The food that they put on the table is determined by what they sell in the market. If I tell them to go to the hospital, there’s no way they are going to go.”

Doctor’s office on wheels

Boateng wanted to find a way to remove these barriers to health care access and education. He started his nonprofit, OKB Hope Foundation, and in 2021, he converted a van into a mobile doctor’s office and started bringing health care directly to those in need. A few times a week, the mobile clinic and medical team travel long distances to remote communities in Ghana and provide free routine medical care.

On each trip, Boateng’s team consists of a nurse, physician’s assistant, doctor, and operation assistant. In the van, they can run basic labs like bloodwork and urinalysis as well as prescribe and provide medications. “It’s like a one-stop shop for people,” said Boateng, adding that most of the people they see have one health issue or another.

Since its launch, Boateng says the Hope Health Van has served more than 4,000 Ghanaians across more than 45 rural communities who otherwise don’t have easily accessible medical care.

https://www.cnn.com/2023/08/11/world/ghana-van-mental-health-medical-care-cnnheroes/index.html – acesso em 04/09/23