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Dr Angela Ofori-Atta Biography: Psych Corps, Prayer Camp Research and Ghana’s Mental Health Reform
In January 2018, the British Journal of Psychiatry published a randomised trial led by Angela Ofori-Atta testing whether psychiatric medication could be safely introduced alongside faith healing at a Ghanaian prayer camp, one of the settings where most Ghanaians with severe mental illness actually receive care.
The study, carried out at the Mount Horeb Prayer Centre in Mamfe, became one of the more widely cited pieces of evidence on integrating biomedical and spiritual approaches to mental health care in West Africa.
Angela Lamensdorf Ofori-Atta is a Ghanaian clinical psychologist, academic and researcher. She is a professor at the University of Ghana Medical School, the founder of Psych Corps, a national psychology first-aid programme, and a former Deputy Minister for Labour under President John Kufuor.
Profile
| Full name | Angela Lamensdorf Ofori-Atta |
|---|---|
| Nationality | Ghanaian |
| Occupation | Clinical psychologist, academic, researcher |
| Education | BA in Psychology and Zoology, University of Ghana; PhD, University of British Columbia (1992) |
| Affiliation | University of Ghana Medical School; Ghana Psychological Council (former Chair) |
| Known for | Founding Psych Corps; integrating psychiatric care with prayer camps; Deputy Minister for Labour, 2003–2005 |
| Spouse | Ken Ofori-Atta, former Finance Minister of Ghana |
Early Life and Education
Ofori-Atta earned a Bachelor’s degree in Psychology and Zoology from the University of Ghana before travelling to Canada, where she spent six years as a Commonwealth Scholar at the University of British Columbia, completing a PhD in 1992.
Academic and Clinical Career
Ofori-Atta has taught and practised as a clinical psychologist at the University of Ghana Medical School since completing her doctorate, rising to Senior Lecturer and later serving as Head of the Department of Psychiatry.
She has introduced courses on ethics and professionalism into both the psychiatry and psychology curricula at the university and has published extensively on mental health service delivery in Ghana, including research affiliated with Korle Bu Teaching Hospital and collaborations with the University of Cambridge and the University of Washington.
Deputy Minister for Labour (2003–2005)
Ofori-Atta served as Deputy Minister for Labour in the administration of President John Kufuor.
During her roughly two years in office, she is credited with expanding the government’s Skills Training and Employment Placement (STEP) programme from around 2,000 participants to 30,000, and with helping to establish employment as a cross-cutting priority within Ghana’s national poverty reduction strategy at the time.
She also served on the boards of several governance-focused civil society organisations during this period, including the Centre for Democracy and Development, the Busia Foundation, and the Ghana Integrity Initiative.
Psych Corps and Mental Health Advocacy
Ofori-Atta founded and directs Psych Corps, a programme that trains psychology graduates completing Ghana’s National Service scheme to deliver psychological first aid in communities, working alongside community psychiatric nurses.
In 2015, she led the University of Ghana Psychiatry Department’s Disaster and Humanitarian Relief Project response following a major flood and fuel explosion disaster at Kwame Nkrumah Circle in Accra that June, which killed a large number of people, according to contemporary reports. She has also been involved in HIV/AIDS public education efforts reaching thousands of students across Ghana.
Research: Bridging Faith Healing and Psychiatric Care
Much of Ofori-Atta’s academic work has focused on how Ghana’s mental health system can work with, rather than against, the prayer camps and traditional and faith healers that many Ghanaians turn to first for care.
Her 2018 randomised trial in the British Journal of Psychiatry, conducted with colleagues from the Joining Forces Research Consortium, tested the introduction of psychiatric medications such as risperidone, olanzapine and fluoxetine into prayer camp care for conditions including schizophrenia and mood disorders.
She has continued this line of research in more recent years, co-authoring studies on digital mental health tools for early psychosis care in Ghana, including a 2026 paper in JMIR Formative Research examining patient, caregiver and clinician needs for such technology.
Boards, Honors and Continuing Work (2025–2026)
Ofori-Atta has served on the boards of a range of organisations, including the Mental Health Authority of Ghana, the Liberian Presidential Center founded by former Liberian president Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, the financial services firm Databank, and international education and literacy organisations including Worldreader and Junior Achievement Africa.
She has continued an active research and speaking schedule into 2025 and 2026, delivering an invited seminar on sociocultural resources for mental health care at the Johns Hopkins Center for Global Mental Health in March 2025, and participating in the “Mental Health by Africa for Africa” conference held in Accra in March 2026.
Personal Life
Ofori-Atta is married to Ken Ofori-Atta, who served as Ghana’s Finance Minister from 2017 to 2024 under President Nana Akufo-Addo.
Her husband is a member of the prominent Ofori Atta family of Akyem Abuakwa, whose members have included Nana Sir Ofori Atta I, Okyenhene and Paramount Chief of Akyem Abuakwa, and whose descendants include Nana Akufo-Addo, a relation through the family’s broader lineage.
Sources
- Academia.edu — Angela L Ofori-Atta
- Databank Foundation — Prof. Angela Ofori-Atta
- Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health — Optimizing Sociocultural Resources to Extend Mental Health Care
- ClinicalTrials.gov — Integrating Psychotropic Medication Into the Care of People With Mental Disorders in a Prayer Camp in Ghana
- National Library of Medicine (WHO Bulletin) — Aggression in Mental Health Settings: A Case Study in Ghana
- JMIR Formative Research — Opportunities for Digital Health to Support Early Psychosis Care in Ghana
- Wikipedia — Ken Ofori-Atta
- Wikipedia — Susan Ofori-Atta
- University of Washington Consortium for Global Mental Health — mHealth for Mental Health in Ghana
Zeez is the editor and founder of BioOrbit, where he researches and writes biographies of public figures from Nigeria and around the world. With 5 years of experience writing about news, entertainment, sports and politics, Zeez focuses on verified facts, clear sourcing and regular updates. Found an error? Report a correction.
