Solutions Journalism as a Developmental Tool in Increasing Rare Diseases Awareness in Ghana

Abstract

Rare diseases more and more are becoming prevalent in the Ghanaian society with little to no attention paid it by healthcare practitioners, researchers and policy makers. The purpose of this research was to examine the knowledge of rare diseases among a cross section of the public, clinicians and the media to better understand other studies within the Ghanaian context. Using thematic analysis, the study analyzed the data on rare diseases among clinicians and the public. Again, the SPSS version 16 was used to analyze the coverage of rare diseases in the dailies to establish the prominence given rare disease stories. The study established a fair awareness of clinicians and the public on the subject of rare disease. However, the issue of diagnosis above everything and throughout the study proved to be an important step in dealing with the gaps identified within the rare disease ecosystem in Ghana. Further studies are required to increase awareness using the media as a tool and to draw researchers as well as policy makers’ attention to addressing the issues of rare disease.