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18 October 2023 | Story André Damons | Photo André Damons
Prof Mathys Labuschagne
Prof Chris Viljoen, Head of the School of Biomedical Sciences; Prof Gert van Zyl, Dean of the Faculty of Health Sciences; Prof Francis Petersen, UFS Vice-Chancellor and Principal; and Prof Mathys Labuschagne, Head of the Clinical Simulation and Skills Unit (CSSU), during the unit’s 10-year anniversary celebration.

In just 10 years, the Clinical Simulation and Skills Unit (CSSU) at the University of the Free State (UFS) went from being just a dream to becoming a national and international leader in medical simulation training.

The CSSU forms part of the School of Biomedical Sciences and was officially opened on 21 February 2013. The CSSU celebrated its 10-year anniversary on Thursday, 12 October 2023.

Prof Mathys Labuschagne, Head of the CSSU, said at the evening’s celebration that the vision and dream came true 10 years ago. “I think the requirement for the successful integration of simulation into a curriculum is first and foremost that it is based on research evidence. It is not a thumb-sucking exercise”.

“It is really seated in research and then you need passion and dedication. You cannot be successful without that, and for that I need to thank my staff – without your passion and dedication it would not be possible to excel,” said Prof Labuschagne.

Simulation important for patient safety

According to the professor, good networking is also important – between departments, professions and companies outside the university and hospital. He said simulation is important for improving patient safety and expanding the training platform.

“By doing simulation, we can train students who cannot always be accommodated on the training platform. There are also a lot of educational advantages to using simulation. Our training activities in the past 10 years grew tremendously. At the moment we have about 4000 undergraduate and postgraduate student contacts a year. Then we do a lot of certification and Continuing Professional Development (CPD) courses. During COVID-19 we did PPE training and ICU training for hospital and clinical staff in a safe environment.

“I am really proud of our research output. In the past 10 years we published 34 articles, and have another six articles currently in press. We have successfully completed eight master’s and seven PhD dissertations and there are now five students who are enrolled and all of them are simulation-associated. I cannot believe it has already been 10 years. I am very proud of the unit, and we strive for excellence in simulation education and training.”

Highlights of unit

Prof Gert van Zyl, Dean of the UFS Faculty of Health Sciences, congratulated the unit on achieving this milestone. Taking a trip down memory lane, he mentioned the names of colleagues who played a role in establishing the unit and said their contributions might not be visible in name in the unit, but they are recognised by them in achieving this milestone.

“It is an excellent achievement to have seven PhDs in 10 years. Well done. Another highlight is supporting the establishing of other simulation units at Nelson Mandela University who came to learn from us. They didn’t have to go the US. The training of staff and students during COVID-19, we had the facility. Let us not forget our simulation role at undergraduate and postgraduate training.

Cutting edge of simulation-based education and training

Prof Francis Petersen, UFS Vice-Chancellor and Principal, who gave a toast at the celebration, said the occasion is an opportunity to reflect on the excellent work done over the past decade and to consider how the unit is ideally placed to meet the aspirations that the UFS has for Vision 130 and the strategy of the university.

“The work of this unit has put the University of the Free State at the cutting edge of simulation-based education and training and the ongoing efforts of all of our staff in the unit who assist with the planning, the development, the setup, and the running of scenarios are acknowledged and greatly appreciated. I want to congratulate the leadership and the staff of the unit for the excellent work you are doing,” said Prof Petersen.

According to him, simulation education has numerous advantages such as improved patient safety, skills development, learning without involving real patients and the transfer of knowledge to the clinical environment. It creates a well-structured teaching and learning framework where simulation can be used as an educational tool assist in grasping the practical aspects of learning.

The training of specialised skills and deliberate practice are the key drivers behind clinical simulation as a training technique. It can also be applied as a tool to prepare students for a crisis situation, which requires high levels of preparedness and that is a very important aspect, said Prof Petersen.

“All these aspects of simulation-based education are something that relates very much to our vision and strategy. We want to be a research-led university, which means that it is not only doing research, but we try to focus on evidence and the research also helps us in the undergraduate programme to make it much more competitive.

“It also brings to the fore some qualities of our values, value of quality, value of impact and value of care. In addition, clinical simulation creates a vibrant learning experience for students and contributes towards our goal to meet the highest standards of excellence and impact in our teaching, learning and research.”

News Archive

Kovsie Dux student seeks to help farmers through her research
2017-10-24

Description: Dux student Tags: Kovsie Dux student, Chéri-Lynn Steyn, Research Assistant, Wag-'n-Bietjie, Animal Science & Agricultural Economics 

Chéri-Lynn Steyn, the Kovsie Dux student for 2016/2017,
likes going on game drives in the Kruger National Park
and taking photographs of birds with her brothers.
Photo: Jóhann Thormählen


From failing her first test at university to becoming the Kovsie Dux; from being a first-year in a tutor class to becoming a tutor   these are snippets from Chéri-Lynn Steyn’s journey at the University of the Free State (UFS).

Although she was not accepted into Medical School to pursue her childhood dream of studying Medicine, she has never looked back and now wants to guide farmers on how to be more efficient and sustainable.

Steyn, who studies BScAgric Animal Science and Agricultural Economics, was crowned the Kovsie Dux Student for 2016/2017. The award recognises and rewards the top-performing and all-round brilliant student. The criteria are a high academic average, coupled with excellent participation and excellence in extra-curricular activities like Community Service, Culture, Leadership and Sports.

Overcoming obstacles a highlight
The Research Assistant at Agricultural Economics says she cannot believe she is the winner. After three years at university, her CV includes 29 modules and 29 distinctions, but she is a well-balanced individual. She has been on the Agricultural Committee, First-Years Committee at Wag-'n-Bietjie residence, a class representative, is an interprovincial hockey umpire, and has cycled the Cape Town Cycle Tour and Telkom 94.7 Cycle Challenge.

Steyn recently looked back at her UFS journey: “From a layman who knew nothing about the agricultural industry, to someone who is able to understand and join in conversations about the industry,” she says. “My personal highlights are those small significant moments of overcoming obstacles.”

Effort less when you love what you do
She says her success is through grace and the Lord’s strength. “I endeavour to never compare myself to others, but set the standard against myself. This enables me to push myself harder and further than I did previously.”

Steyn also feels that when you love what you do, putting in a lot of effort is no effort at all. “My big dream is to be able to help farmers on a large scale through the research I do.”

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