Latest News Archive

Please select Category, Year, and then Month to display items
Previous Archive
04 May 2022
Robert Frater
The research efforts in the Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery in the Faculty of Health Sciences, UFS, have come a long way since the establishment of a homograft bank, animal research, and laboratory-based research on cardioplegia by Prof Hannes Meyer in the 1980s

Several world-class scientists and academics in the field of cardiovascular research will converge at the University of the Free State (UFS) on Thursday (5 May 2022) for a one-day hybrid conference to explore and celebrate the massive strides made in this critical field at the UFS Robert W M Frater Cardiovascular Research Centre.

The research efforts in the Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery in the Faculty of Health Sciences, UFS, have come a long way since the establishment of a homograft bank, animal research, and laboratory-based research on cardioplegia by Prof Hannes Meyer in the 1980s. Renewed interest in 2004 under the leadership of Prof Francis E Smit culminated in the establishment of the Robert W M Frater Cardiovascular Research Centre (the Frater Centre) in 2015. This was made possible through donor funding, especially by Dr Robert W M Frater MD PhD (honoris causa, UFS), a South Africa-born New York-based cardiothoracic surgeon, researcher and innovator as infrastructure and project support by the UFS.

The vision of the Frater Centre is to be a leading cardiovascular research institution in South Africa and sub-Saharan Africa. It provides an interdisciplinary training and research platform for scientists and clinicians from different backgrounds to develop as researchers and collaborators in cardiovascular and thoracic surgery and related domains. Activities are focused on the development of African solutions for African problems.

Three main divisions
The Frater Celebration day will highlight the achievements made thus far in a hybrid format in four sessions, which can be attended on a virtual platform or in person. The centre’s local and international collaborators will participate in the programme, and Dr Ronnie van der Merwe, the Group CEO of Mediclinic International, is the guest of honour.

The Frater Centre consists of three main divisions, all of which will form part of the focus of the conference programme in various forms during the day:

1) The Clinical Research Division addresses cardiovascular disease on a broad front, ranging from population and prevalence studies, healthcare solutions and clinical outcomes studies in a specific South African and African context.

2) The Research, Development and Commercialisation division is divided into Tissue Engineering and Cell Biology, Tissue Banking and Large Animal studies, and bioengineering to develop African solutions and technology within these domains.

3) The Simulation Programme provides an integrated interdisciplinary platform for the education and training of individuals and teams in cardiovascular, thoracic, anaesthetic, perfusion technology and related nursing fields in a state-of-the-art simulation unit. The research centre is developing a unique and leading programme and systems in this field. This endeavour is also developing IT models for training, evaluation and research.

The Frater Centre and 4IR
The Centre is firmly established in the fourth industrial revolution. It is new technology-driven, creating new IT platforms and boasts extensive interdisciplinary projects at the biomedical sector's local, national, and international levels.

It is essential to note that the extensive and successful collaboration within the Frater Centre not only exists on institutional level but also nationally and internationally. These collaborators assist, mentor, direct and contribute to the research activities.

Click: Link to the event
Event programme



News Archive

Farewell to our #FaceOfFacebook
2017-05-02

Description: Reuben Davids, FaceOfFacebook Tags: Reuben Davids, FaceOfFacebook

Reuben Davids, outgoing #FaceOfFacebook ambassador
for UFS digital channels
Photo: Rulanzen Martin

Reuben Davids has been our most featured #FaceOfFacebook since the campaign’s inception in 2013. As the star of more than 20 videos for the UFS digital platforms in less than a year, Reuben has been the embodiment of a Kovsie ambassador. As we say goodbye to this campus celebrity, we wish him all the best with his future plans and endeavours. Reuben shares a few thoughts with us about his term as Kovsies’ #FaceOfFacebook.

Much fun and many a lesson learnt

What did it mean to you to be the #FaceOfFacebook and how did it change your life?

“I’ve always wanted to be in front of the camera. So being the #FaceOfFacebook meant I could fulfil that dream. It changed my life in the sense that I’m much more confident now when speaking to a large audience.”

What was your most challenging moment?

“Trying to look good during a Facebook livestream. For example, on the ‘Krav Maga’ [self-defence] one. That was pretty tricky, and I had to keep my pose, regardless of the pain!”

And your funniest?

“All the bloopers we’ve ever had. Those were the funniest for me.”

Biggest lessons learnt?

“I learnt how to manage my time, to think on my feet, and how to come up with ideas in the moment and make them work.”

What advice would you give to any budding #KovsieCyberSta?

“Just come with your creativity. It’s definitely a learning experience. It’s not just work, it’s much more enjoyable! The team you are working with is amazing, so come with fresh ideas, and stay as committed as possible. It’s not hard, because it’s such a joyride.”

We use cookies to make interactions with our websites and services easy and meaningful. To better understand how they are used, read more about the UFS cookie policy. By continuing to use this site you are giving us your consent to do this.

Accept