Durban — Eight final-year medical students breathed a sigh of relief as they were awarded bursaries at the University of KwaZulu-Natal’s Nelson Mandela School of Medicine on Tuesday.
The Gift of the Givers in partnership with Bonitas Medical Fund awarded the bursaries, enabling students to complete their studies and graduate as doctors at the end of 2024.
Dr Ahmed Bham, head of Gift of the Givers Search and Rescue, said the students were selected because of their academic excellence and their underprivileged background.
Final-year medical student Siyanda Ndlovu, 29, from Nquthu said that he is relieved that he received the bursary. Now he can focus his energy on his studies as he plans to go into internal medicine, especially in the sub-specialty of nephrology, he said.
“I am so happy because this opportunity came at the right time for me to focus on wrapping up my studies. I want to focus on nephrology because I have seen that a lot of young people suffer from kidney failure.
“Also, in my village there are not a lot of doctors who specialise in this and they also do not have enough dialysis machines needed by patients at least three times a week. They travel long distances from Nquthu to Vryheid and Dundee for treatment, which is stressful for the patient,” he said.
Final-year student Lungelo Simelane from Pongola said he plans to focus on psychiatry because mental health goes unnoticed in black communities and it’s an issue for the youth.
“Our black society usually ignores mental health issues or blames the patient for probably using drugs or blames it on witchcraft. I want to help raise awareness on mental health being a medical condition,” he said.
Lee Callakoppen, principal officer of Bonitas, said that the association with Gift of the Givers is part of their vision of not focusing on the negative but to creating solutions.
“We want to make a difference and that starts with giving back to our members and also helping others. Rather than focusing on the negative things that our society grapples with, at our board level discussion we want to focus on how we can become active leaders and make a difference. Today is the evidence of that,” he said.
The partnership, which began in 2018, continues into 2024, with an additional investment of R3.3 million.
Prof Ncoza Dlova, who is the dean of the Nelson Mandela School of Medicine, said that the students should not forget where they come from when they are working.
“Do not follow trends or fall under peer pressure and buy fancy cars with your salary as you are starting your careers next year.
“Remember where you come from and uplift your families and communities. Do not forget the grandmothers who were there for you when you were struggling,” she said.
Prof Dlova also emphasised the importance of giving back one’s time and resources once in a while to the youth in their communities.
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Daily News