From Accra to London: NAP+ Ghana researcher reflects on her visit

My September 2025 visit to the United Kingdom formed part of ongoing collaborative efforts under the Digital Health and Rights Project (DHRP) to advance research and advocacy on digital health, inclusion, and human rights. The primary purpose of the trip was to participate in an academic workshop hosted at Queen Mary University of London, which convened a diverse group of researchers, practitioners, and advocates from various disciplines to discuss how digital spaces are transforming access to care, information sharing, and organise around stigmatised or contested medical needs. It offered a vibrant space for interdisciplinary reflection spanning public health, anthropology, digital humanities, and human rights. It emphasised how online communities have become critical lifelines for people whose health needs remain stigmatised or neglected within formal health systems.

The visit also provided a valuable opportunity to engage with DHRP consortium partners based in the United Kingdom, particularly the University of Warwick and STOPAIDS, to strengthen collaboration, share progress from Ghana, and contribute to shaping the project’s broader advocacy and research agenda in Ghana.

Activities and Engagements

Arrival and Co-working days with CIM/Warwick and STOPAIDS

I arrived in the UK on 8 September 2025 and had the opportunity to co-work with colleagues at the Centre for Interdisciplinary Methodologies (CIM), University of Warwick and STOPAIDS. On Tuesday, I participated in a mini workshop organised by the DHRP team, providing an opportunity to first present my paper on “Digital Escape from Stigma” from the Ghana findings of Paying the Costs of Connection, our multi-country study published in May; then spent the rest of the day working alongside the Warwick team, engaging in collaborative review and feedback sessions that strengthened the framing of our research outputs.

A subsequent co-working day with STOPAIDS in Shoreditch focused on advocacy priorities in Ghana, where we explored strategies for strengthening Ghana’s advocacy plans and addressed feedback to help finalise the Ghana National Policy Brief. There was also a dinner meeting with Mike Podmore, CEO of STOPAIDS, and Meg Davis, Principal Investigator for DHRP, where the discussion centred on advocacy approaches and relationship-building with Members of Parliament. Drawing on Mike’s extensive experience, the conversation provided useful insights into effective strategies for engaging policymakers and fostering sustained relationships to advance our advocacy on technology-facilitated abuse and digital rights protection.

These sessions provided a rich space for collaboration, sharpening the project’s research and advocacy components, and reinforcing the value of cross-partner engagement within the consortium.

Workshop Participation and Presentation at QMUL

On the 12th, I participated in the Queen Mary University of London workshop where I presented DHRP’s Ghana findings under the theme “Digital Escape from Stigma: Seeking Health Information and Care through Digital Platforms and Informal Networks.” The workshop was a full-day event comprising three sessions. The first session, Conceptual Foundations, offered theoretical reflections on “DIY health” and the evolving landscape of self-directed healthcare practices. Presenters examined how online communities form around contested or poorly understood conditions such as endometriosis, and how these digital networks enable peer education, visibility, and emotional support in the face of systemic medical neglect. Others also explored how young people and women engage with digital spaces to navigate reproductive health and sobriety movements, raising important questions around trust, ethics, and visibility in online health communities.

The second session, Activism and Interventions in Practice, foregrounded the politics of care and resistance. The Love Tank CIC’s presentation shared lessons from community-led digital interventions supporting queer and migrant communities in the UK, emphasising harm reduction and pragmatic health activism. Dr Annabel Sowemimo’s discussion on the self-removal of contraceptive implants revealed how medical coercion drives patients toward online DIY solutions, while Monika Kaminska-Visser examined the digital abortion networks in Poland and Germany, contrasting grassroots and physician-led mobilisations.

My presentation, Digital Escape from Stigma: Seeking Health Information and Care through Digital Platforms and Informal Networks in Ghana, contributed a Global South perspective. It highlighted how marginalised young people, particularly LGBTQ+ persons, leverage digital spaces and informal online networks to access health information, peer support, and care resources in contexts of exclusion from formal health systems and criminalisation. This prompted further discussion on the intersections of digital inclusion, risks, and technology-facilitated abuse.

The final session, Methodological Innovations, introduced emerging research techniques for studying online health communities. Some presenters examined the ethics of studying vulnerable groups online, the influence of generative AI on young people’s health information-seeking behaviours, and the tensions between autonomy and safety in online peer-support spaces.

This academic dissemination not only highlighted Ghana’s unique contributions to the multi-country study but also served as an advocacy moment, bringing attention to how stigma, structural inequalities, and risks online undermine digital health access for young adults. The feedback received will inform advocacy efforts and future manuscripts to strengthen Ghana’s visibility in international academic and policy spaces.

Building Relationships and Informal Exchanges

Beyond formal sessions, I greatly appreciated the warm hospitality and opportunities for informal engagements, sharing meals, exploring the city, and building personal connections. These moments fostered trust and solidarity, which will strengthen collaboration going forward. They also reminded me that meaningful partnerships are not only built on outputs but also on relationships of care and respect.

Prof. Meg Davis and Alberta Nadutey in Shoreditch

Key Outcomes

• Increased visibility of DHRP research findings and contribution to global discussions on digital health, stigma, technology-facilitated abuse and rights.
• Publication Opportunities: The workshop organisers plan to submit a special issue to a journal featuring papers presented during the workshop, to which I will contribute.
• Strengthened collaboration with the Warwick and STOPAIDS teams, improving coordination on advocacy outputs.

Overall, the visit demonstrated the critical importance of cross-country collaboration in addressing the intersections of digital transformation and human rights. The Ghanaian experience resonated strongly with participants from other contexts, reaffirming the global need for safe, inclusive, and rights-based approaches to digital health governance, access and research.

Conclusion

The UK visit provided a meaningful opportunity to contribute to global dialogue, strengthen partnerships, and contribute to the advocacy outcomes and research directions within the Digital Health and Rights Project. The insights and collaborations developed during this visit will inform ongoing advocacy efforts in Ghana.

DHRP and NAP+ Ghana at Centre for Interdisciplinary Methodologies (CIM), Warwick: Saksham Midha, Oladipo Akinmade, Meg Davis, Alberta Nadutey, Bernard Koomson