COPD Captains Spotlight: Prince Osei Poku, COPD Foundation Captain from Ghana, West Africa
This article was written by Bailey McCrary.
Chronic lung conditions impact people all around the world, and the COPD Foundation partners with volunteers both within and outside the United States to help make things better for those affected. While different countries may face very different types of issues, the needs felt by those with chronic lung conditions are often similar.
We asked some questions of one international COPD Foundation volunteer making an important impact outside the United States. The following is an interview with Prince Osei Poku, who serves as the COPD Foundation Captain from Ghana. His role is driven by a personal mission to improve lung health care for all.
Who are you and how does your background connect to lung health advocacy?
I am Prince Osei Poku, a pulmonary disease advocate and COPD Foundation Captain from Ghana, West Africa.
I am an Administrator for Asthma Ghana, a Pharmacy Technologist, and a Sustainable Procurement Practitioner with some years in the National Ambulance Service of Ghana. I’ve worked with patients with chronic respiratory diseases in West Africa where lung health care can be very expensive, and access is limited, especially the primary health care settings. Thankfully, through advocacy for increased access to lung health care, things are beginning to change for patients.
What motivated you to become a lung health advocate?
I met a retired miner with COPD who had become heavily dependent on opioid medication with cough mixtures to manage his persistent productive cough. It troubled me. I began looking for ways to advocate for awareness and education to help with the impact of workplace hazards on people affected by cystic fibrosis and COPD.
What are some of the most pressing lung health challenges in your region?
There are many of them, but to name a few:
- There is poor access to lung health care in primary care in Ghana and much of West Africa. There are few facilities that hold asthma and COPD clinic days like they do for other diseases like hypertension and diabetes. Due to that, these few clinics are always packed with higher risk patients with longer waiting times.
- There is inconsistent availability of asthma and COPD management medications at government hospitals where many patients can afford care. This has been a major barrier to therapy, and the cost of treatment and medications are affected by national health insurance.
- There is deteriorating access to portable oxygen concentrators in West Africa, coupled with very expensive services and limited supply chains of oxygen. This makes it hard for COPD patients who have been prescribed supplementary oxygen to have a desired quality of life.
What gives you hope for improving lung health globally?
The adoption of the World Health Organization (WHO) Assembly Resolution has enabled health care policies by countries like Ghana to pay critical attention to chronic respiratory diseases (CRDs).
WHO continues to emphasize that the most widely recognized risks factors for the development of CRDs include smoking, exposure to indoor and outdoor air pollution, living in areas of deprivation, and work-related exposures.
The global call for investment by both the private sector of countries and their governments for effective CRDs management brings hope for new treatment options.
What can individuals do to support lung health advocacy, even if they’re not experts?
People with COPD and their caregivers should speak up for their needs and health. Governments should also help by creating strong rules and programs that support lung health.
Leaders at workplaces that use dangerous materials must protect workers from harmful exposures. Being exposed many times can raise the risk of getting lung diseases like COPD. We also need to use fossil fuels and biomass fuels more carefully to lower air pollution, which is a major cause of COPD in West Africa.
References
- Addo-Yobo EO, Woodcock A, Allotey A, Baffoe-Bonnie B, Strachan D, Custovic A. Exercise-induced bronchospasm and atopy in Ghana: two surveys ten years apart. PLoS Med. 2007;4(2):e70. doi:10.1371/journal.pmed.0040070
- World Health Organization. Tobacco. World Health Organization. Published June 25, 2025. https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/tobacco