Medical Internships in Ghana

Make a difference and boost your CV in this hands-on learning experience

Book now for £49

Prices from

£739

739
14 people have been looking at this trip recently
Medical Internships in Ghana

Group Size: Avg. 5-15

Trip code: GHMI

Duration: 3-12 weeks

Volunteer on a mix of medical projects
Accommodation and meals inlcuded
Make new friends and explore Ghana

Give your career in medicine a boost on this medical internship programme in one of Africa’s most welcoming countries. Spend 3 - 12 weeks helping out in a variety of hospital and clinic settings including operating theatres, maternity wards and family planning clinics, as well as getting involved with outreach programmes, and visiting local families in their homes. You’ll learn by observation with the full support of local staff, and may get the opportunity to get hands-on as you progress. All meals and accommodation in our friendly volunteer house are included, and we’ve got loads of amazing evening and weekend activities on offer. Choose from a general medical internship, nursing, dentistry, and physiotherapy. You’ll head home with a certificate as well as loads of unforgettable memories of your time in this amazing country. It’s an unbeatable experience for anyone interested in starting medical training, or furthering a career in medicine.

Please note: Participants must have a qualification in medicine or be currently studying medicine at university

Trip Highlights

  • Build your CV by gaining invaluable, hands-on medical experience in well-established Ghanaian hospitals and clinics
  • Spend time in a wide range of medical facilities, including family planning clinics, maternity units, and operating theatres
  • Make new friends in our welcoming volunteer house in the seaside town of Teshie
  • Immerse yourself in Ghanaian life with party and cultural nights out in the local area
  • Join our optional weekend trips and discover Ghana’s incredible wildlife, national parks, and stunning beaches
Gap 360 Trip Notes

Want to read it later?

Download more trip information and detailed itinerary

100% Financially Secure
We have provided financial bonds which guarantee that your money is totally safe with Gap 360 Ltd.
What's included
  • Accommodation in the volunteer house
  • All meals during your stay
  • Medical internship placement
  • Certificate on completion of the placement
  • Airport pick-up and drop off
  • Pre departure help and advice
  • Full project induction
  • Accra city tour
  • Local area orientation
  • In-country induction pack
  • 24-hour emergency support
What's not included
  • Flights
  • Travel insurance
  • Visa
  • Vaccinations
  • Transport to/from placement
  • Laundry
  • Snacks, soft drinks & alcohol
  • Optional activities
Further trip information

Ghana is a country full of beauty, friendly people, and amazing potential, but healthcare is under-funded and over-subscribed. As a medical intern you’ll be helping local communities get access to medical care while gaining a real insight into the medical system in a developing country

You’ll need to specify whether you want to do a general medical internship, nursing, dentistry, or physiotherapy at your time of booking. There’s a 3 week minimum stay on the project but we recommend that you stay 8 – 12 weeks to really get the most out of your experience.

General Medical Internship

If you choose to take the general medical internship, you’ll be working in either a hospital or specialist clinic in the Accra area. This may include working at a maternity clinic, helping with education at a family planning clinic, observing in an operating theatre, or assisting on a community outreach project. You can choose to focus your internship on one project or help at a mixture of medical projects.

For much of the time you will be shadowing experienced staff and learning by observation although you may get the chance to get hands-on as you progress. The level of responsibility given will vary depending on your experience. You’ll learn the day-to-day reality of working as a medical professional in a developing country. The role is challenging but incredibly rewarding and you’ll provide vital support to overstretched staff.

Nursing

If you are a postgraduate nursing student or experienced nurse looking for a new challenge, you can choose to help with general nursing, on maternity wards, in ear, nose and throat or eye clinics, in mental health or with community nursing.

You’ll take patient details and assess for triage, as well as providing emotional support to patients in your care. You may also be responsible for small procedures like changing dressings and giving medication to patients. If you work in the community, you’ll give advice about vaccination and general healthcare to deprived communities. It’s a unique opportunity to try a nursing role with a difference.

Dentistry

Dentistry is often an overlooked medical area in Ghana so as a dental intern you can offer support and improve resources. Educating Ghanaians about the importance of dental care is important and by supporting developing communities as a dentistry intern in a hospital or clinic you can really make a difference.

Physiotherapy

If you’re a qualified physiotherapist or currently training (you must have reached second year undergraduate degree level or above) you can assist as a physiotherapy intern in Ghana. Helping at community clinics and alongside sports organisations you can really help make a difference. The clinic offers you the opportunity as an intern to help with conditions such as strokes or a variety of injuries and will include some hydrotherapy. Interns will also be invited to help teach Ghanaian physiotherapy students and work with current staff to share ideas from 'western' training.

The volunteer house & transport

The volunteer house is based in the coastal town of Teshie, close to Accra. Accommodation is basic but comfortable with single sex dorm style rooms, cold showers (although with Ghanaian temperatures you won’t mind!), a communal living room, and an outside space with seating. Staff live on site, and there’s a real family feel to the house.

It’s your responsibility to arrange and pay for your own transport between the volunteer house and your placement. Local transport is the cheapest way to get around but taxis are very affordable and most volunteers use Uber.

Free time

With only 4 – 6 hours of volunteering a day, and most weekends free, you’ll have plenty of free time to enjoy the wealth of activities on offer in the local area. From beaches and cultural markets to bustling bars, go-karting, and salsa lessons, there’s always something to do!

Evening social activities are regularly arranged by our local team, from African dancing or drumming to bar crawls in Accra, cooking classes, and local sports games, and there are a number of incredible weekend group trips on offer (extra cost), including visits to Cape Coast, Mole National Park, and the Volta region.

Real customer reviews
Ghana Facebook Group Discussion

Hi everyone! I'm looking at the Wild African Adventures trip, anyone else? 😁

Is anyone looking the South Africa Adventure in July / August 2024? 🦁🐘

Is anyone doing the Morocco Adventure in September? 🐪

Booking options

The prices will load here automatically, if this does not happen for you: Click here to view Prices

Online booking is unavailable for this trip

Online booking isn't currently available but if you'd like to enquire please use the form below. Alternatively if you'd like to discuss alternate trips or if you have any other questions please don't hesitate to contact us.
Call us on: 01892 527392
Email us at: [email protected]
Flights from £336

Cheapest flights between London and Accra for the next 6 months.

*Prices updated every 72 hours

Cheapest: £336 May, 2024
Most expensive: £720 March, 2024
Arrival information

Fly into Kotoka International Airport (ACC) in Accra on your agreed placement start date (you can arrive any Saturday of the year to start the project on a Monday). You’ll be asked for your yellow fever vaccination card by immigration, so make sure you have this in your hand luggage.

You’ll be able to connect to Wi-Fi as soon as you arrive in the airport so you can communicate your whereabouts with the local team. Drivers aren’t allowed in the airport so once you’ve retrieved your bags, you’ll need to exit the airport to find our team member. We’ll send you a photo of them a day or two before you travel on Whatsapp so you’ll be able to spot them easily. There is likely to be a large group of people waiting to collect passengers outside the airport so make sure you only leave with the team member you recognise from the photo. They should also be holding a sign with your name and flight number on it.

The accommodation is about half an hour’s drive from the airport. When you arrive at the volunteer house, the team will do a thorough orientation session covering house rules, cultural differences, safety, and placement details, as well as taking you into the local area to get SIM cards, cash if required, and to show you around.

You should book your departure flight for the end date of your project unless you’re planning to continue your travels in Ghana. Your departure date will always be a Saturday and we will transfer you back to the airport in time for your flight. 

Accommodation & meals

Accommodation

You’ll be staying in a shared volunteer house, where you’ll get to meet and mix with other volunteers (up to 40 people at any time). Based in a great location in Teshie, a small coastal town in the Greater Accra region, the house may be different to what you’re used to at home. It’s basic but comfortable with easy access to shops, bars, restaurants, and a beautiful beach.

Rooms are single sex dorm style with 4, 6, and 8 share rooms (private rooms may be available on request). All rooms have fans, but air-conditioning is also available at an extra cost. Rooms have mosquito nets on the windows so there’s no need to bring your own. There are lockable wardrobes in the dorms, and a safety box available onsite for your valuables. Showers are cold water only, but with the kind of temperatures you’ll experience in Ghana, we guarantee you won’t mind! The house is spotless with a cleaning service provided daily and there are traditional hand wash facilities which you can either use yourself, or for a charge our staff will be happy to do your laundry for you.

Staff live on site as well as some local people who are involved in the programme, and there’s a real family feel to the house. There’s a large communal living room which is a great social space, and an outside area with seating where you can soak up the year-round sunshine! It’s the ideal environment to easily make new friends and there are plenty of opportunities for group outings and planned trips too.

The house does not have Wi-Fi, but local SIM cards with data packages can be bought very cheaply and there are internet cafes locally.

Airport transfers are included but you are responsible for your own transport to and from your placement. The main centre for this programme is a 20–40-minute taxi ride from the volunteer accommodation (taxis are cheap and plentiful in Ghana). There is a taxi rank outside the house, but most volunteers use Uber.

Meals

Our amazing live-in chef prepares three meals a day for our volunteers but there is also access to a kitchen where you can make something for yourself whenever you fancy it.

Provided meals are a mix of traditional Ghanaian and western food (menus are posted in the common room). A typical breakfast consists of fruit, bread, and hot drinks. Lunch is a mixture of sandwiches, wraps, pasta, and Ghanaian dishes. Dinners include everything from yam chips with chicken to jollof rice, and chicken curry. You’ll also have the chance to try some traditional local dishes like fufu (fermented cassava), red red, and plantain and groundnut soup. Water is treated and supplied at the accommodation, but you’ll have to buy bottled water when you’re out.

Meals are all served at the volunteer house with fixed mealtimes (breakfast 6.30 – 8.30am / lunch 12.50 – 1.50pm / dinner 5 – 6.30pm). 

Our chef is very happy to cater for dietary requirements from vegan to halal – just let us know before you travel. 

Minimum age & eligibility

You’ll need to be 18 or older to join this programme.  

You must also be medically qualified or enrolled in university in a medicine related field. Nursing applicants should be postgraduate level or trained nurses. Physiotherapy applicants will need to be educated to 2nd year undergraduate level or above.

If you are not currently studying medicine but are enrolled to join a medical course in the future, there may be an opportunity to observe and shadow medical professionals. Please speak to a travel advisor for more information.

Visas

All volunteers need a visa (temporary tourist visa) to enter Ghana. You’ll have to arrange this yourself before departure. The standard application costs £60 and takes 10 – 15 working days from the date the application has arrived at the High Commission. Faster express services are also available at an additional cost. There are a lot of stages to the visa application process but we’re here to support you at every step of the way, including providing you with supporting documents.

Your Ghana visa will become valid once it is entered into your passport. Therefore, you should not apply for your visa too early as it may expire before you enter the country. It is recommended that you apply for your visa approximately 6 weeks prior to departure. Once in Ghana, you can then easily extend it during your stay and the local team will assist you in this.

You’ll need the following when applying for a visa:

  • Valid certificate of inoculation against yellow fever
  • Passport valid for at least six months from your date of departure from Ghana and with at least 3 blank pages
  • 2 colour passport photographs (digital copy for online application)
  • Names and addresses of references and accommodation in Ghana
  • Invitation letter from the programme (uploaded to your online account)
  • Valid Ghana identification of Host (uploaded to your online account)
  • Copy of your flight details

Health

You’ll need to be vaccinated against Yellow Fever before travelling to Ghana and present a certificate to confirm this on arrival. Speak to your GP about vaccinations and up-to-date health information before you travel.

DBS checks

On this particular programme, as you’ll be working with children, you’ll need to have a clean criminal record and to undergo an enhanced DBS (previously known as CRB, or Criminal Record Bureau check) at an additional cost.

Once we receive your booking payment, you’ll be sent an online application link for the DBS check. After you’ve completed the application, the DBS (Disclosure and Barring Service) will need verification of your identity. To do this you’ll need to take 3 original documents to your nearest crown post office and use their DBS and ID verification service (there is a small cost for this which is payable directly to the Post Office). Once the Post Office verification is done it usually takes up to 2 weeks for your DBS to be processed, and your DBS will be sent to you directly in the post.

Visa rules are subject to change. You should check with the relevant embassies before travelling. Enhanced DBS (criminal record) checks can take 6-8 weeks to come back, so please ensure your start date allows enough time for your DBS check to be completed.

Trips making a positive impact Learn more