Jacob Plange-Rhule (27 July 1957 – 10 April 2020) was a Ghanaian

physician A physician, medical practitioner (British English), medical doctor, or simply doctor is a health professional who practices medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring health through the Medical education, study, Med ...

, academic, and Rector of the

Ghana College of Physicians and Surgeons Ghana, officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It is situated along the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, and shares borders with Côte d’Ivoire to the west, Burkina Faso to the north, and Togo to t ...

from October 2015 until his death in 2020. At the time of his death, Plange-Rhule was a professor and Head of the Department of

Physiology Physiology (; ) is the science, scientific study of function (biology), functions and mechanism (biology), mechanisms in a life, living system. As a branches of science, subdiscipline of biology, physiology focuses on how organisms, organ syst ...

of the

School of Medical Sciences A school is the educational institution (and, in the case of in-person learning, the Educational architecture, building) designed to provide learning environments for the teaching of students, usually under the direction of teachers. Most co ...

Kumasi Kumasi is a city and the capital of the Kumasi Metropolitan Assembly and the Ashanti Region of Ghana. It is the second largest city in the country, with a population of 443,981 as of the 2021 census. Kumasi is located in a rain forest region ...

Ghana Ghana, officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It is situated along the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, and shares borders with Côte d’Ivoire to the west, Burkina Faso to the north, and Togo to t ...

. He was also a consulting physician at the Department of Medicine of the

Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital The Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital(KATH) also known as GEE after the name of its contractors Messrs. GEE Walter & Slater in Kumasi, Ashanti Region, Ghana, is the second-largest hospital in Ghana, and the only tertiary health institution in the ...

(KATH) in Kumasi, where he founded the Hypertension and Renal Clinic and headed it for more than two decades.

Biography

Plange-Rhule was born on 27 July 1957, in

Winneba Winneba is a town and the capital of Effutu Municipal District in Central Region of South Ghana. Winneba has a population of . Winneba, traditionally known as ''Simpa'', is a historic fishing port in south Ghana, lying on the south coast, ...

, Central Region,

. He had his secondary education at the

Accra Academy Accra Academy is a Single-sex education, boys' high school located at Bubuashie near Kaneshie in the Greater Accra Region, Ghana. It admits both boarding and day students. Founded as a private school in 1931, it gained the status of a Government ...

where he obtained his Ordinary-level certificate in 1976 and his Advanced-level certificate in 1978 prior to entering the

Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), commonly known as UST, Tech or Kwame Tech, is a public university located in Kumasi, Ashanti region, Ghana. The university focuses on science and technology. It is the second public uni ...

. He graduated with a

Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery A Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery (; MBBS, also abbreviated as BM BS, MB ChB, MB BCh, or MB BChir) is a medical degree granted by medical schools or universities in countries that adhere to the United Kingdom's higher education trad ...

(MB ChB) from the School of Medical Sciences at Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology in 1984. Plange-Rhule then completed a doctorate in

renal physiology Renal physiology (Latin language, Latin ''renes'', "kidneys") is the study of the physiology of the kidney. This encompasses all functions of the kidney, including maintenance of acid-base balance; regulation of fluid balance; regulation of sodiu ...

from the former

Victoria University of Manchester The Victoria University of Manchester, usually referred to as simply the University of Manchester, was a university in Manchester, England. It was founded in 1851 as Owens College. In 1880, the college joined the federal Victoria University. A ...

(now known as the

University of Manchester The University of Manchester is a public university, public research university in Manchester, England. The main campus is south of Manchester city centre, Manchester City Centre on Wilmslow Road, Oxford Road. The University of Manchester is c ...

) in 1991. In addition to serving as Rector of the

from 2015 to 2020, Plange-Rhule was a former President of both the

Ghana Medical Association The Ghana Medical Association (GMA) represents physicians, surgeons and dentists working throughout Ghana. It was established in 1958 and is divided into ten divisions representing each region of Ghana as at the end of 2018. History The earliest ...

(GMA) and the Ghana Kidney Association. Professor Jacob Plange-Rhule died from a short illness with

COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. In January 2020, the disease spread worldwide, resulting in the COVID-19 pandemic. The symptoms of COVID‑19 can vary but often include fever ...

at the University of Ghana Medical Centre in

Accra Accra (; or ''Gaga''; ; Ewe: Gɛ; ) is the capital and largest city of Ghana, located on the southern coast at the Gulf of Guinea, which is part of the Atlantic Ocean. As of 2021 census, the Accra Metropolitan District, , had a population of ...

on 10 April 2020, at the age of 62. He was survived by his wife, Gyikua, a

pediatrician Pediatrics (American English) also spelled paediatrics (British English), is the branch of medicine that involves the medical care of infants, children, adolescents, and young adults. In the United Kingdom, pediatrics covers many of their youth ...

, and three children. He was laid to rest on Saturday 23 May 2020 at Gethsemane Memorial Gardens after a private funeral service.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Plange-Rhule, Jacob 1957 births 2020 deaths Ghanaian medical doctors Alumni of the Accra Academy Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology alumni Alumni of the University of Manchester People from Central Region (Ghana) Deaths from the COVID-19 pandemic in Ghana Academic staff of Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology