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Fighting COVID-19: Here is how we are helping

16 April 2020 | Story Department of Communication and Marketing | Photo Charl Devenish

Farmovs — In 2019, FARMOVS was pre-qualified by the WHO to support clinical studies aimed at improving access to quality generic medicines across the globe.

The University of the Free State (UFS) is committed to supporting government’s efforts to overcome the COVID-19 pandemic. During this challenging time, dedicated staff members at the UFS continue to provide services as a testimony to their commitment to advance public knowledge of COVID-19 for the greater good of South Africa.

The following is a synopsis of the areas in which the UFS is actively assisting.

Public Health Emergency Solidarity Trial
Clinicians from the Department of Internal Medicine, the Department of Critical Care, and the Division of Virology will be working with FARMOVS to participate in the Public Health Emergency Solidarity Trial initiated by the World Health Organization (WHO). This international randomised trial will evaluate four treatment options (remdesivir, lopinavir/ritonavir, lopinavir/ritonavir plus interferon, chloroquine or hydroxychloroquine) for the treatment of COVID-19.

The trial is expected to include more than 45 countries worldwide, including a number of South African sites.

Farmovs
FARMOVS is in a planning process to support all the Bloemfontein hospitals, including Pelonomi, Universitas, 3 Military Hospital, Mediclinic, and Rosepark, in conducting the largest global trial on COVID-19 – the Public Health Emergency Solidarity Trial, under leadership of the WHO.

Negotiations are ongoing between the UFS and the Department of Health in the Free State for FARMOVS to offer support with the continuation of healthcare to non-COVID-19 patients in an attempt to free up space at Universitas Hospital for isolation of COVID-19 patients.

In 2019, FARMOVS was pre-qualified by the WHO to support clinical studies aimed at improving access to quality generic medicines across the globe. FARMOVS also receives feasibility requests for support with the evaluation of existing drugs (repurposing) as well as the development of novel drugs for the treatment of COVID-19 – this is an ongoing process.

Disaster Management Training and Education Centre (DiMTEC)
DiMTEC represents the UFS on the Provincial Joint Operation Centre (PROVJOC). The PROVJOC is a fully equipped, dedicated facility that is proactively established to enable all relevant role players /disciplines to jointly manage all safety and security-related aspects of any planned event or any major incident which has occurred or is imminent – especially in the response and recovery operations phase – at the strategic and/or tactical level, using the Unified Command System. This facility is also linked to all other established safety and security centres.

Research and Innovation
The UFS hosts a SARChI Research Chair in vector-borne and zoonotic diseases, and recently invested in the establishment of a biosafety level-3 facility. Hence, there is expertise on the campus to plan and conduct research on zoonotic and medically significant viruses. In addition, there are research groups focusing on protein expression systems with potential for utilisation in the development of diagnostic assays with application in either diagnosis or surveillance.

Currently, researchers at the UFS have established several projects that will contribute directly towards the COVID-19 outbreak.

News Archive

Nothing beats hard work, says Kovsie

2011-10-13

Khethiwe Mtshali

Khethiwe Mtshali is a classic example of a go-getter. This hard-working 23-year-old student from Ladysmith, who is currently studying at our Qwaqwa Campus, strongly believes in her own abilities. She believes that hard work pays off and that a person will be richly rewarded if you give it your best. Khethiwe has recently returned from a month-long visit to China where she was stationed at the Fresh Water Fisheries Research Centre of the Chinese Academy of Fishery Sciences in Wuxi City.

“I was nominated to go to China to learn and conduct research, as South Africa lacks expertise in the field of food security and related fields of science,” says Khethiwe, a 2011 recipient of the Golden Key Award and an M.Sc.in Zoology student who specialises in Parasitology.

“The Chinese is a hard-working nation that I wish we could emulate as South Africans. Doing my research on parasitology of fish and other related agricultural diseases over there was a worthwhile experience that will not only benefit me as an individual, but the entire Parasitology Division of the Department of Zoology and Entomology at the Qwaqwa Campus. This research is surely going to put the university and the entire country in a better position to compete with the best in the field of parasitology,” Khethiwe said.

After completing her B.Sc. degree in 2008, Khethiwe worked as a teacher at Ezakheni High School for a year before she was summoned back to our university by her mentor and Head of the Department of Zoology and Entomology, Dr Oriel Thekisoe, where she studied towards an honours degree, which she passed with distinction last year.

“If it had not been for Dr Thekisoe, I think I would still be a teacher whose potential would not have been tapped to the maximum. I wish to thank him for pushing me to do my best at all times. He has taught me that where there’s a will, there’s a way,” Khethiwe said.

The best is yet to come for this proud Kovsie who can teach you a thing or two in Chinese!

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