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23 February 2021 | Story Dr Nitha Ramnath | Photo Supplied
Mankopane Tsosane.
Juggling work and studies while creating work-life balance can be quite challenging for many. Mankopane Tsosane managed to do just that. A staff member in the Department of Public Administration and Management on the Qwaqwa Campus, Tsosane will receive her MAdmin degree at the University of the Free State virtual graduation ceremony on 24 February 2021.

Promoted by Prof Liezel Lues, the title of Tsosane dissertation is, The influence of human resource development challenges on public health service delivery in Mangaung.  The study examined the human-resource development (HRD) challenges facing the administrative staff of the National, Pelonomi Regional, and the Universitas Academic hospitals.

“I am extremely excited and honoured to have gone through this journey and completed my master’s degree,” says Tsosane. This was no easy task, as I was supposed to balance my work and study. But this couldn’t have happened if it had not been for the continued support of my supervisor, Prof Liezel Lues. She has been a pillar of strength throughout, and for that I am forever indebted to her. “I have learned that the future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams and anything is possible if you put your mind to it, with the right amount of discipline and dedication.”

An article written by Tsosane was accepted for publication in the next issue of the Journal of Public Administration titled: ‘Leadership Accountability and the Development of Administrative Staff at Prominent Hospitals in the Mangaung Metropolitan Health Area’.

The dissertation accepts that there is an increasing demand from the public for quality health-service delivery, as shown in the high number of public protests against poor health-service delivery. The study concludes that the Free State Department of Health (FSDoH) is still faced with the problem of a skills audit and insufficient budget allocations. Therefore, there is a dire need by the FSDoH to acquire skilled HRD professionals or to upgrade their skills and knowledge to meet the requirements of the now changing public sector.

News Archive

Largest group on African continent introduced to Sign Language
2016-07-05

Description: z UFS101 SASL Tags: z UFS101 SASL

The introduction of basic Sign Language
as part of the UFS101 course was a great
success. From left are Susan Lombaard,
Annemarie le Roux, Tshisikhawe Dzivhani
(all from the Department of South African
Sign Language), and Lauren Oosthuizen
(UFS101).
Photo: Leonie Bolleurs

As a result of a new initiative at the University of the Free State (UFS), the largest group of students on the African continent took part in a first-year seminar which included Sign Language.

A total of 5400 students on the Bloemfontein Campus and 1000 on Qwaqwa Campus were taught basic Sign Language by Susan Lombaard, Acting Head of the Department of South African Sign Language, and her team members, Tshisikhawe Dzivhani, Annemarie le Roux, and Nicolene de Klerk.

It forms part of the UFS101 module presented to all first-year students. The initiative, begun in the first semester of 2016, will form part of UFS101 in future and was met with an overwhelmingly positive response.

Three segments of course

Sign Language was taught in three segments and positioned as large-class learning experiences in the Callie Human Centre (Bloemfontein Campus) and the Nelson Mandela Hall (Qwaqwa Campus). Students were taught about deaf culture, Sign Language theory, as well as how to sign their names, exchange pleasantries, and have a basic conversation.

A valuable skill to have

“It (the Sign Language experience) was very interesting and helpful,” said one of the students. “It is important to have the ability to communicate with all sorts of people, and to be able to help them in a crisis”. According to another, it sparked an interest in Sign Language. “It is a skill I will continue to use and try to learn more from it,” said a third.

Lombaard – in collaboration with the UFS101 team – will be presenting a paper related to this achievement at the DeafNet Africa Conference in Johannesburg, from 26 to 30 September 2016.

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