By Chernor Alimamy Kamara
An Alumna of the UK Government-sponsored Chevening Scholarship Programme, Dr. Elizabeth Allieu, has been recognized by the programme’s Alumni Association of Sierra Leone for her contribution to the country’s health sector.
Dr. Allieu is the current Head of Child and Adolescent Mental Health and Acting Deputy Medical Superintendent at the Sierra Leone Psychiatric Teaching Hospital.
A graduate of the College of Medicine & Allied Health Sciences (COMAHS) in Sierra Leone, she got a Chevening scholarship in 2019-2020 to study for an MSc in Advanced Pediatrics at King’s College London.
She reportedly offered a module in Child Mental Health whilst at King’s College; a course which they said triggered a passion for an existing gap in Sierra Leone.
She pioneered the setting up of the first Child Mental Health Unit in the country on her return home, becoming Head of Child and Adolescent Mental Health and Acting Deputy Medical Superintendent at the Sierra Leone Psychiatric Teaching Hospital.
“The Chevening Scholarship has greatly impacted my life and career. I had the opportunity to do another course which is an Associate member of Kings College London (AKC). This course greatly enhanced my career pathway and helped set me up for a career in Child/adolescent mental health,” Dr. Allieu stated.
She stated that based on the hospital data; there has been an increase in the number of children presenting with mental health issues such as Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) depression, anxiety disorders, and substance use disorders. She said, studies done in 2017 show a treatment gap of 99.7% in child mental health.
The Child Mental Health Unit has been in operation in Sierra Leone for over a year now being managed in partnership with Partners in Health (PIH).
The Sierra Leone Chevening Alumni Association is said to be very proud of the contributions Dr. Allieu and other products of Chevening are making in Sierra Leone and the world over.
The Sierra Leone Psychiatric Teaching Hospital previously named Kissy mental Home was established over 200 years ago and has been mainly involved in providing adult psychiatric services and no child mental health services.
Since 1983, Chevening has supported over 50,000 professionals from around the world to study in the UK through scholarships and fellowships.
The international scholarship programme is being funded by the Foreign, Commonwealth, and Development Office and partner organizations.
It has been offering awards to bright students to study in the UK for one year on a fully-funded master’s degree course.
Many Sierra Leonean students have benefited from Chevening Scholarships and fellowships that have returned and are significantly contributing to the development of the country.
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