At the crossroads of public health innovation and compassionate care stands Dr. Sharon Karbo, a physician, researcher, and health strategist whose work is quietly reshaping health systems in Ghana and gaining global attention.
Whether in the oncology wards of Accra, the underserved communities of northern Ghana, or at the United Nations, her mission is clear: to make health systems work for everyone, especially the forgotten and the underserved.
For many in Bolgatanga and parts of northern Ghana, healthcare once felt like a distant privilege. That changed when Dr. Karbo led research into the prevalence and management of hepatitis B a chronic and often overlooked condition endemic to the region.
Recognising its devastating long-term impact, she launched advocacy campaigns to promote early childhood vaccination and expand public health education. Her work helped bring awareness to a silent epidemic and introduced actionable solutions to curb its spread.
As a senior medical officer at Ghana’s National Center for Radiotherapy and Oncology, Dr. Karbo provided care to more than 1,000 cancer patients annually. Her impact, however, extended beyond clinical numbers.
She became a national voice for equity in cancer treatment, spearheading reforms in internal hospital financing that made treatment accessible for low-income families and helped reduce dropout rates among patients facing financial hardship. Her work restored hope and dignity to some of Ghana’s most vulnerable oncology patients.
As the youngest physician appointed to the Ghana Medical Association’s Building and Development Committee, a national body responsible for shaping the country’s healthcare infrastructure, Dr. Karbo brought a fresh, strategic lens to system-wide challenges.
In this prestigious role, she co-developed visionary plans for regional physician hubs aimed at addressing longstanding service delivery gaps in rural areas. Her strategic input introduced sustainable financing models and emphasised equitable resource allocation.
By injecting innovative thinking into traditionally conservative systems, Dr. Karbo distinguished herself as a next-generation leader transforming national healthcare strategy.
But even beyond the wards and boardrooms, Dr. Karbo is redefining community health leadership in Ghana through her nonprofit, On-Field Life Savers (OFIS).
As founder and executive director, she has transformed OFIS into one of the country’s most dynamic public health advocacy groups tackling the rising burden of non-communicable diseases (NCDs).
Under her leadership, OFIS has launched scalable initiatives that equip everyday citizens students, traders, fishermen, and athletes to become active agents of health within their communities.
Through her vision, OFIS has:
- Trained over 600 lay community members to identify and refer hypertension and diabetes cases;
- Established eight Hypertension and Diabetes Advocates (HADA) Hubs to provide community-based screening and education;
- Donated screening equipment such as sphygmomanometers and glucometers to underserved areas;
- Trained over 1,000 schoolchildren and 400 adults in CPR and emergency first aid.
She has also cultivated partnerships with local groups including market associations, fishing cooperatives, football academies, and health NGOs ensuring health knowledge becomes a permanent fixture of community life.
What sets Dr. Karbo apart is not just the scale of her work, but the self-sustaining model she created, which continues to thrive without external funding demonstrating her rare combination of leadership, strategy, and resource mobilization.
Dr. Karbo recently graduated from the highly competitive dual master’s program in Public Health and Business Administration at Johns Hopkins University, one of the world’s most prestigious institutions.
There, she was competitively selected into the Hopkins Business of Health Initiative (HBHI) a highly selective, interdisciplinary program that unites scholars from the Bloomberg School of Public Health, Carey Business School, School of Nursing, and School of Medicine.
As part of this expert community, Dr. Karbo contributes to high-level discourse on achieving a healthier, more equitable America through affordable, high-value healthcare systems, with a focus on how business and policy incentives can transform national health outcomes.
In recognition of her growing influence, Dr. Karbo was invited to participate in the 79th United Nations General Assembly side event on Financing Women and Youth representing the Johns Hopkins Carey Business School in global discussions on equitable health financing, gender equity, and sustainable development.
Her presence spotlighted Africa’s healthcare needs and solutions on a global platform, reinforcing her role as a powerful advocate for health justice.
From moderating international healthcare panels to leading research on equitable cancer care, Dr. Karbo’s focus remains the same: making health systems work better for those who need them most.
Whether it’s her telehealth policy work in Latin America or her public health research on cardiovascular disease and cancer, she continually seeks ways to bridge global innovation with local relevance ensuring no one is left behind in the pursuit of health equity.
What makes Dr. Karbo’s trajectory especially compelling isn’t just her impressive awards and affiliations though they are notable. She was honored with the Relentless Advancement Award, given to individuals who challenge the status quo, persevere through adversity, and uplift entire communities through purpose-driven leadership.
Whether working at the community level or shaping policy at the global stage, she consistently asks: How can this work improve lives back home?
She’s not just representing Ghana on the global stage she’s redefining it. From oncology units to policy panels, from community screenings to United Nations summits, Dr. Sharon Karbo is building the kind of future where health equity isn’t a privilege, but a right. Her impact is rooted in compassion, shaped by experience, and powered by a bold vision: that Ghana and all of Africa deserve health systems that work for everyone.
And she’s not waiting for change. She’s leading it.
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DISCLAIMER: The Views, Comments, Opinions, Contributions and Statements made by Readers and Contributors on this platform do not necessarily represent the views or policy of Multimedia Group Limited.
