From Screen to Success: Reflections on my Journey Through the MPH (online) Programme and UNCOVER Group at The University of Edinburgh

The MPH (Online) experience

I joined the MPH (online) programme at the University of Edinburgh in September 2019. As a student from Ghana, a lower-middle-income country, it was indeed a joyful experience, as I envisaged the opportunity to develop and deepen my knowledge and skills in public health and to be trained by world-class Lecturers and Researchers from this reputable University.

Throughout my journey in the MPH programme, I was able to build some essential skills needed to excel in my current role as a Public Health Researcher in Ghana: good leadership/management, effective communication, and good time management skills. I lead and support different teams to plan, develop, and undertake research projects; convey ideas to different stakeholders with various levels of expertise; as well as give and receive critical feedback on these research projects. I am excited that these skills have enhanced my personal brand as a Public Health Researcher, enabling collaborations on research projects and building professional connections within and across industries. I am also happy that the MPH programme has the student support system to help counsel students about their academic development, of which I am a beneficiary through the guidance offered me by Dr Evgeniya Plotnikova.

While it may be easy to recognize the importance of distance education, I realized throughout my journey on this programme that it was equally critical to acknowledge the potential challenges associated with this mode of studying. As I could imagine many of my fellow students in low-resource settings did, I also faced challenges with poor internet accessibility and power outages during my productive hours for studies. Notwithstanding Ghana’s unwavering commitment to expand electricity supply and internet access, these problems still persisted, and had in a way affected my digital participation, especially during real-time virtual meetings with course organizers and supervisors. However, I learnt to put in alternate plans to alleviate these power outages and internet glitches by always making sure that my laptop and cellphone were fully charged before online meetings and often had to use my cellphone as a wi-fi hotspot despite internet costs and battery life. For a moment, I thought that an in-person mode of study, where communication takes place instantaneously, would have been a better choice. Nevertheless, I needed to embrace the difficulties associated with this personal learning experience and stay motivated while learning online. This motivated mindset and resilience enabled me to graduate with a distinction in the MPH degree programme in November 2022, while being recognized as the joint winner for the prestigious “John Last Award for Public Health” – an annual prize for the best final year student in the MPH (online) programme and for the recipient’s excellent contributions to the academic and public health communities at the University.

Working with UNCOVER

I opted for the Systematic Review course during my second year on the MPH programme to enable me to develop my interest and understanding in conducting evidence-based public health research – amid the COVID-19 pandemic – and had the desire to transition from optometric clinical practice into public health research after my MPH studies. This difficult but important decision led me to subsequently join the UNCOVER Applied Evidence Synthesis group, in May 2021. Working on diverse health-related evidence synthesis projects within multidisciplinary teams via UNCOVER has been an amazing experience, as it offered me the unique opportunity to apply my learning from the Systematic Review, and the Research Design for Public and Global Health courses on the MPH programme as well as develop other important transferable research skills (such as adaptability, communication, teamwork, project management, and writing and analytical skills) for my public health career. Today, I can confidently say that this hands-on training by UNCOVER has given me a solid foundation for my research career.

My final year dissertation was supervised by Dr Ruth McQuillan, Co-Lead for UNCOVER. This was the first time I was attempting to undertake a qualitative evidence synthesis project – which aimed at assessing the benefits, challenges and best practice for patient and public involvement in evidence synthesis – and I was a bit skeptical when I chose this approach/method. Nonetheless, I embraced this challenge, as I felt that my dissertation would offer me a good learning opportunity and help make a meaningful contribution to UNCOVER’s working model by clarifying this area of concern. My previous work with UNCOVER was something I considered to be very impactful and my desire to see this group succeed in its quest to positively influence public health policy and practice globally meant that I had to put in a lot of hard work to ensure a successful dissertation. The enormous support from Ruth and other members of UNCOVER enabled me to complete my dissertation successfully and to publish it in the Health Expectations journal thereafter (Agyei‐Manu, E., Atkins, N., Lee, B., Rostron, J., Dozier, M., Smith, M. and McQuillan, R., 2023. The benefits, challenges, and best practice for patient and public involvement in evidence synthesis: A systematic review and thematic synthesis. Health Expectations, 26(4), pp.1436-1452) – a sigh of relief and a profound sense of accomplishment. I feel proud and honored to see the impact of this work within the global research community, as it has been recognized among Wiley’s top 10 most-cited and 10% of most-viewed papers published by the journal in 2023.

The mentoring experience

I had never imagined how mentorship could serve as a powerful force in shaping my research career and life in profound ways. Throughout my MPH studies and work with UNCOVER, I had the privilege of being both a mentor and a mentee. I realized that I would have a successful research career if I were able to align with a good mentor who could not only provide guidance, but also, great inspiration. This reality check led me to connect directly with Dr Ruth McQuillan, whom I have known since 2019 and in several capacities: as the (former) programme director for the MPH (online) programme, as my lecturer and dissertation supervisor, as co-author on several publications, and Co-Lead for UNCOVER group. Throughout this highly challenging but motivating research career endeavor, the experience of my interactions with Ruth has proved to be worthwhile – an unforgettable mentoring experience!

Ruth inspired me to start my entrepreneurial venture as a Research Consultant in Ghana after my MPH studies. In 2024, my student visa application for a fully funded PhD studies in Canada was unsuccessful, despite the strong support I received from the host university in Canada. This was an altogether frustrating and agonizing experience. However, in my interaction with Ruth throughout this process, she highlighted an important aspect of what I do for UNCOVER on a consultancy basis within her support letter. This led me to think about ways of providing similar research consulting solutions in Ghana. Consequently, in January 2025, I decided to set up E.A.M. Consult, a private research consulting firm based in Ghana. Our purpose is to facilitate engagement with both local and international researchers and consultants in undertaking health-related, evidence-based research projects, and to provide capacity building, mentorship, networking and hands-on collaboration for both undergraduate and postgraduate students engaging in research in Ghana and Africa. Evidence synthesis research in Africa is growing but is not as well-established as in high-income countries. E.A.M. Consult intends to contribute to the production of evidence synthesis research within the African context to help inform policy and practice, especially in areas like public health. Ruth has constantly provided good guidance and support, helping me to navigate challenges, develop my skillset, and achieve my professional and personal goals through our periodic, one-on-one virtual meetings.

Overall, I would say that my mentorship under Ruth, the leadership of UNCOVER, and staff on the MPH programme has been a guiding light, illuminating my path toward professional and personal career development through shared experiences and serving as good role models, demonstrating that success is achievable despite challenges.

An evidence synthesis capacity building initiative in Ghana

It has always been my utmost desire to impart the knowledge and skills gained from my evidence synthesis training with UNCOVER and the MPH programme to students (future generations) engaging in research in Ghana and Africa. In an attempt to help develop the knowledge and skills of a number of young, talented and motivated undergraduate and postgraduate students in Ghana to effectively conduct, utilize and disseminate high-quality health-related evidence synthesis and to inform policy and practice, my organization (E.A.M. Consult) launched its maiden edition of the “Capacity Building for Evidence Synthesis Programme” in May 2025. This Programme consists of an 8-week online training (embedded with bi-weekly in-person training sessions) and a 3–4-month trial project in health-related evidence synthesis, from July 1 to December 30, 2025.

Through collaboration with UNCOVER group, my organization has had the opportunity to utilize UNCOVER’s online systematic review training course, which will play a pivotal role in tutoring these participants. ‎This collaborative approach is critical for effective capacity building and will enhance opportunities for participants, ensuring that the building process is tailored to the specific needs and career goals of these students. Additionally, it is amazing to witness how the leadership of UNCOVER has been helpful in enhancing my professional connections with other African researchers and expressed their willingness to support the training of these students via webinar sessions, fostering a sense of ownership. I look forward to a unique, exciting and rewarding journey with these students, even as we plan to evaluate what works well, where improvements could be made, and how to apply these lessons in future training and collaborations. It is my hope that I will not only work together with UNCOVER to train these students but also support a shared vision of replicating this collaboration by other members of UNCOVER from different continents to form a global network of evidence-based researchers, where we could meet annually to showcase and support the evidence-based research works or initiatives being undertaken by UNCOVER member organizations. Thus, understanding our roles and responsibilities in shaping the use of evidence-based research across the world.

Looking into the future

I believe that the opportunity to serve as a Tutor on some MPH (online) courses at the University and to work with UNCOVER presently will further enhance my academic teaching and research skills and contribute to my long-term goal of becoming a Professor of Epidemiology, specializing in evidence synthesis and guideline development/implementation. I am grateful to everyone who has contributed to my personal and professional career development – medaase (to wit, thank you).

‎

About the Author

[Medal for “John Last Award for Public Health”]

Eldad Kwadwo Agyei-Manu, OD, MPH

Dr Eldad Kwadwo Agyei-Manu is a Ghanaian-trained Optometrist who works as a Public Health Researcher. He is the Founder & CEO of E.A.M. Consult, a registered private research consulting firm based in Ghana. He is a member of the UNCOVER Applied Evidence Synthesis group and serves as a Tutor/Mentor on some of the Master of Public Health (online) courses at The University of Edinburgh. His research interests include evidence synthesis, epidemiology, patient & public involvement in research, public health, and ophthalmology & visual science.