Lansana Kallon – an Emerging Voice

1 September 2022

Lansana Hassim Kallon is a member of the ReBUILD team from COMAHS (College of Medicine and Allied Health Sciences) at the University of Sierra Leone. He has recently been awarded a place on the prestigious Emerging Voices for Global Health scheme [opens new tab]. He tells us about his hopes for the programme and his future plans.

Hi Lansana, congratulations on getting a place on the Emerging Voices scheme. It’s a real achievement. Can you tell us something about the programme?
Thanks! I am excited to participate in the Emerging Voices for Global Health programme (EV4GH). The EV4GH is a multi-partner blended training programme by world-renowned global health institutions aimed at younger health professionals and researchers worldwide. So, that includes health policy and systems researchers like myself, decision-makers, and other health system professionals. We will undergo a unique training programme which includes distance and face-to-face training, and by the end ‘emerging voices’ will hopefully be prepared for careers as influential global health voices and change agents.

Why did you apply to EV4GH?
The EV4GH aligns with my personal research goals and priorities as part of the ReBUILD for Resilience health systems strengthening consortium. The course contents are all relevant to strengthening my skills and knowledge and will enable me to further develop my ability to support the research that my team is undertaking. We are working to produce evidence-based findings which will be helpful in developing and implementing much-needed health systems policies and health programs in Sierra Leone and other low resources settings.

What are you most looking forward to?
There is lots to look ahead to but I am especially pleased to be presenting at the Seventh Global Symposium on Health Systems Research in Bogota [opens new tab], where I look forward to sharing my research on the importance and roles of community health workers to their local communities, both in the face of diseases outbreaks – such as Ebola and COVID-19 – and in their routine health care provision (more on the research here).

What else are you working on at the moment or will you be working on after EV4GH?
I am currently working on a community health systems strengthening project with stakeholders in two of Sierra Leone’s most disease-prone communities. Some of the work we are doing in the EVGH is really helping with this project, and I will be able to apply this learning to the study. I am also looking forward to several opportunities for professional development via short courses, mainly around strengthening disrupted and shock-prone health systems and leadership in those contexts. This is an exciting time for me and I’m grateful for the opportunities.

Main image: A focus group discussion with community leaders