Ghana is in mourning following the sudden passing of Phyllis Boateng, a 31-year-old registered nurse, entrepreneur, and philanthropist whose vibrant spirit and tireless dedication touched thousands of lives. Known for her inspiring TikTok presence with over 100,000 followers, Boateng’s legacy through her Inspire Africa Foundation continues to resonate, sparking tributes and renewed calls for supporting healthcare workers. Her death on October 24, 2025, has left a void but also a powerful call to carry forward her mission of compassion and empowerment.
A Nurse with a Heart for Service
Phyllis Boateng began her career as a registered nurse, working in Ghana’s hospitals where she provided care under challenging conditions. Her journey into nursing was marked by resilience, as shared by her friend Ssowee, a Ghanaian influencer. In a heartfelt X post, Ssowee recalled meeting Boateng when she arrived in Accra, exhausted from a long journey and struggling to find a place to stay. Offering her a room, Ssowee and his wife witnessed Boateng’s gratitude, which fueled her lifelong commitment to helping others. This story, now viewed over 500,000 times, underscores her humility and drive.
Boateng’s nursing work focused on maternal health and community screenings, often volunteering in rural areas to address conditions like hypertension and anemia. During the COVID-19 pandemic, she distributed masks and hygiene kits to over 2,000 frontline workers, funding much of it herself. Her mantra, “Nurses heal bodies; philanthropists heal hopes,” defined her dual role as caregiver and changemaker.
Building the Inspire Africa Foundation
Beyond the hospital, Boateng founded the Inspire Africa Foundation in her early 20s, a nonprofit dedicated to uplifting orphans, widows, and youth with disabilities. Her initiatives included:
- Orphan Support: Annual “Back-to-School Drives” provided school supplies, uniforms, and meals for over 500 children in Accra’s underserved communities. These efforts ensured education access for vulnerable kids.
- Widow Empowerment: Boateng offered micro-grants for small businesses, such as tailoring kits or market stalls, helping widows like Akosua (pseudonym) avoid homelessness. Akosua shared on X, “Phyllis gave me my business; she gave me my dignity.”
- Disability Inclusion: She trained 1,000+ youth annually in vocational skills like bead-making and digital marketing. Her TikTok videos highlighted success stories, such as Kofi, a teen in a wheelchair who became a freelance graphic designer.
By her passing, the foundation had impacted over 10,000 lives, with plans for a vocational center in Kumasi. Boateng’s ability to fund these efforts through her businesses—a shipping company and event planning firm—set her apart as a model of self-sustained philanthropy.
TikTok Star and Community Voice
Boateng’s TikTok platform was a powerful tool for advocacy. With millions of views, she shared health tips, entrepreneurial advice, and stories of her foundation’s work. Her dance videos and motivational posts, often captioned with calls to “lift others up,” inspired Ghanaian youth to pursue purpose-driven careers. Fans described her as “loaded with light,” a phrase echoed by Ssowee in his tribute.
Her online presence also amplified healthcare challenges, such as low nurse pay (GHS 1,500/month, ~$100) and burnout driving 42% of African nurses to plan emigration. Boateng’s work highlighted the need for better support for healthcare workers, a message now resonating in tributes.
A Nation Mourns and a Legacy Endures
Boateng’s sudden death—details of which remain private—has sparked grief across Ghana. The hashtag #PhyllisLegacy trended on X, with celebrities like Nadia Buari calling her “a quiet force” and orphanage leaders praising her reliability. Donations to Inspire Africa Foundation surged 300% within 24 hours, reflecting her impact.
The foundation, now under interim trustees, plans the Phyllis Boateng Empowerment Center in Accra to offer nurse training scholarships and continue her programs. Her death also reignites debates on Ghana’s healthcare crisis, with 22 critical care nurses leaving one hospital last year for better opportunities abroad, straining systems further.
Why Her Story Matters
Phyllis Boateng’s legacy is a testament to the power of combining professional skill with compassion. Her work as a nurse, entrepreneur, and philanthropist shows how one person can transform communities. As Ghana and Africa face a projected 6.1 million nurse shortage by 2030, her story calls for policies to retain and support healthcare heroes.
For more on her impact, visit the Inspire Africa Foundation or read Ssowee’s tribute on X. Let’s honor Phyllis by continuing her mission to heal and uplift.
Fellow Nurses Africa is the independent voice of African nursing. We educate, inform and support nurses across Africa.
