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31 December 2018 | Story Charlene Stanley | Photo Charlene Stanley
Kego Phuthi
Kegomodicwe Phuthi’s passion for books extends far beyond her work at the UFS Sasol Library.

She was born with a love for books and finds herself looking for something to read wherever she goes.

“That’s how I learn something new every day,” says Kegomodicwe Phuthi, whose passion for reading is reflected in the things she gets up to after leaving her office at the UFS Sasol library.  

She’s been a librarian for the past 22 years, working at various libraries in the Northern Cape, North West and Free State. Since 2015, she’s been the faculty librarian for the Faculty of Natural and Agricultural Sciences at Kovsies.

“I’m passionate about my job,” she says. “It’s always wonderful to see someone coming in here, not knowing much about books or how to access information, and then learning something and leaving with hope.”

She believes that when a love for reading is inculcated from childhood, students will not struggle when they come to university. Her own daughter Rebaone, a student in Music and Computer Sciences at Kovsies, is living proof of this.

“I read to her even before she was born!” she laughs. “And now I can see the results, as she gets distinctions in almost all her subjects.”

Kegomodicwe has been named Free State Librarian of the Year by the Library and Information Association of South Africa (LIASA). Factors considered include the fact that she started many libraries from scratch and also does volunteer work after hours at a Bloemfontein children’s home, reading to kids and teaching them a love for reading.

“It’s great to get this kind of acknowledgment,” she says. “The library is really the nucleus of the whole university. For me, it’s an honour to serve here. Most people look down on servants, but for me it’s the most powerful thing. All good leaders start as servants.”

News Archive

Ethics at the heart of healthcare practice
2017-05-17

Description: Ethics at the heart of healthcare practice Tags: Ethics at the heart of healthcare practice

Prof Gert van Zyl during the launch of Health
Ethics for Healthcare Practitioners with
Prof Laetus Lategan at the Central
University of Technology.
Photo: Supplied

The Central University of Technology (CUT) in partnership with the University of the Free State (UFS) launched a newly published book: Health Ethics for Healthcare Practitioners that aims to raise awareness among healthcare practitioners and patients about various unethical challenges faced by healthcare services in both the private and public sectors.

Prof Laetus Lategan, Director of Research Development and Postgraduate Studies at CUT, and Prof Gert van Zyl, Dean of the UFS Faculty of Health Sciences, are the co-editors of the book intended to provide a moral guide to healthcare professionals when dealing with their patients. 

Holistic approach to healthcare practice

Their work places renewed emphasis on the importance of healthcare ethics. This is due to a diversifying range of healthcare services and the imminent collapse of the public healthcare service sector; most notably in developing countries. The authors particularly focus on how their findings can be integrated into real-life situations.  

The book looks at modern-day healthcare ethics and how they apply to both patients and healthcare practitioners including doctors, professional nurses and therapists. It is an elaborate reference book that will help healthcare practitioners to make informed decisions should they be faced with ethical dilemmas in their practices and assist them to gain a better understanding and devise solutions to problems faced by communities.

Academic journey and partnerships forged
Prof Van Zyl said the book had been a joyful journey of collaboration between the two universities, a journey of academic colleagues who become friends. He explained that they wanted to focus on creating new approaches to healthcare from an ethical perspective, to provide a guide and reference on ethics, not only to healthcare practitioners, but also to patients. “We hope this book will make a difference in healthcare delivery,” he concluded.

Prof Lategan said modern science needed to become more interdisciplinary, which would transcend the way science was conceived. “The essence of healthcare is to be of service to other people and have relationships with other people. I think it’s high time for us to start caring for one another, especially in the academic environment. If we are really looking after the health of other people, whether it is mental, spiritual or physical health, it starts with caring for other people.”

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