Name: Bright Akpalu Email:bright.akpalu@ghana-khrc.org Telephone Number: +233 61 27304

Bright Akpalu started as a professional teacher. He later gained admission to the University of Ghana, Legon after writing his Ordinary and Advanced level examinations as a private candidate. He graduated as a psychology major.

He taught Government, English Language and Social Studies at Abetifi Presbyterian Secondary School where he was made the assistant staff secretary, the entertainment master and the staff representative on the school’s Board of Governors. This was by dint of hard work and devotion to duty.

Bright gained admission again into the University of Ghana, Legon to pursue an M.Phil programme in Clinical Psychology.

After his second degree, he worked briefly with the Women and Juvenile Unit (WAJU) headquarters of the Ghana Police Service and at the National Secretariat of the Federation of Women Lawyers (FIDA), providing counseling and psychotherapy to women reporting distress as a result of marital discord.

As a professional teacher, Bright holds the rank of Assistant Director of Education in the Ghana Education Service. His teaching experience spans through the entire educational system, from primary school to the university. His latest teaching assignment was his appointment as a Teaching Assistant at the Department of Psychology, University of Ghana for the 2001/2002 academic year.

With the establishment of the National Reconciliation Commission (NRC), Bright was appointed as the Counsellor for the Greater Accra / Volta Zone of the Commission. After his term of contract, he received a certificate of honour “for meritorious service to the Commission”.

Just after he has ended his assignment with the NRC, Bright was appointed as a Research Fellow at the Kintampo Health Research Centre, the position he is holding to date.

He has been working closely with the principal investigator on a case-control study investigating the risk factors of schizophrenia in the general population of rural Ghana.

The SCAN is a comprehensive instrument for the diagnosis of all the major adult psychiatric conditions.

He has also assisted the principal investigator with the translation of the SCAN and other instruments into Twi, the main language of the study area.

Bright is a founding member of PsyClin Network, an NGO based in Achimota, Accra that delivers general psychological services to clients. He is currently the Executive Secretary of the Network, having been elected for a second term of office.

Bright’s areas of interest in research and career development include psychotic disorders, cognitive development in children and young adults, as well as stress management strategies; his vision for the next three years is to attain a Ph.D in Cognitive Development, Neuropsychiatry or Stress Management.

Publications

• Akpalu BM. (1997). Learning strategies for effective retention: a critical look at massed and distributed learning.
• Akpalu BM. (2002) Psychosocial and gender correlates of readmission in schizophrenia: a clinical survey of Accra Psychiatric Hospital.