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14 June 2024
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Story Anthony Mthembu
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Photo Suplied
Jeremiah Hlahla, a UFS student completing his PhD in Botany at the University of Debrecen as part of an exchange initiative funded by the Erasmus+ Mobility Programme.
As part of an exchange initiative facilitated by the Erasmus+ Mobility Programme, Jeremiah Hlahla, a student at the University of the Free State (UFS), is nearing the completion of his PhD studies at the University of Debrecen in Hungary. Hlahla’s journey, which began in February 2024 and is set to conclude in July 2024, has been a remarkable learning opportunity. “As a first time-traveller to Europe, I have thoroughly enjoyed engaging with people from different countries and cultures,” he said.
The benefits of international collaboration
Hlahla is currently pursuing a PhD in Botany, focusing on plant stress physiology. “My current PhD project investigates the physiological, biochemical and morphological responses of vegetable-type soybean, or edamame, to combined drought and heat stress,’’ he explained. He considers the University of Debrecen the ideal institution to complete his research due to its extensive expertise and resources in similar projects. He noted that his colleagues at Debrecen conduct significant work on plant protection against biotic and abiotic stresses, including salt and drought stress, as well as proteins and amino acids in barley and other legumes.
Given the vast knowledge available on similar projects, Hlahla has found substantial engagement with his work at the University of Debrecen. “Upon arrival, I delivered an introductory lecture presenting my UFS project on the synergistic effects of combined drought and heat stress on the physiology and biochemistry of edamame. It was an engaging session as everyone could relate to my work and asked many questions,’’ he said.
Insights gained from the exchange
Hlahla has also gained valuable lessons that will assist him in his research career, including biotechnology and physiology tools. “I learned how to prepare samples and use high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) and reversed-phase ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography (UHPLC) to quantify proteins and amino acids,’’ he said. These techniques are beneficial not only for his current work but will also support future soybean research.
As his experience at the University of Debrecen nears its end, Hlahla reflects on the collaborations and friendships he has formed, which stand out as a significant highlight.
UFS School of Nursing opens new frontiers at 40
2009-11-16
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The opening of the virtual facility of the School of Nursing at the University of the Free State (UFS) and a gala dinner to celebrate the School’s 40th year of existence took place on the Main Campus in Bloemfontein this week. At the opening were, among others, from the left: Prof. Jonathan Jansen, Rector and Vice-Chancellor of the UFS; Dr Oluseyi Oyedele and Ms Viona Munjeri, both from The Atlantic Philanthropies; and Prof. Anita van der Merwe, Head of the School of Nursing at the UFS.
Photo: Leatitia Pienaar |
All eyes in the nursing profession in South Africa were turned to the University of the Free State (UFS) when the School of Nursing opened a state-of-the-art virtual health training and learning facility and celebrated its 40th year of existence with a gala dinner on the Main Campus in Bloemfontein this week.
The lustrous events were attended by dignitaries from all spheres of the health-care fraternity in South Africa.
The new virtual facility, The Space, is made possible by a grant of R16 million from The Atlantic Philanthropies and R1 million from the UFS. The Atlantic Philanthropies organisation is an international philanthropic organisation that is going to inject R70 million into nursing in South African over the next four years. The initiative will enhance nursing education and step up the quality of health-care delivery in South Africa. Four major grants were made to universities in South Africa, of which the UFS is one.
With the facility at the UFS School of Nursing, nursing education is propelled into the future. Prof. Anita van der Merwe, Head of the School of Nursing, says, “The virtual learning facility is a very new way of thinking and teaching. At the moment, theory and practice are separated, as theory is often taught in the mornings, followed by practical settings later in the day. Learner nurses then also go to clinical facilities for their practicals where the quality of care is declining and human resources are a problem.
“We believe that with new technologies such as e-learning and high-tech computer-mediated equipment we can use the ‘virtual world’ to bridge the theory-practice gap in the same location.”
Prof. Van der Merwe says the project is essentially about transformation: taking a stand against stagnation in nursing education and practice and daring to be different.
In the new virtual facility nurses will have the best of three worlds – the expertise of the facilitator/educator, simulation technology, and a vast selection of on-line and off-line software, exposing them to blogs, broadcasting and enhancing computer literacy. This will attract both the new “millennial” generation, which tends to be technologically competent, as well as the older learner because of the unthreatening learning environment.
The core space will accommodate 40 to 60 students and is designed to encourage informal, collaborative learning and practice simultaneously. It will have a demarcated area for “patients” (such as advanced adult and baby patient simulators) and a “clinic space” allowing for role play.
At the gala dinner, Prof. Jonathan Jansen, Rector and Vice-Chancellor of the UFS commended nurses in South Africa for their caring role, but also expressed his concern that South African has lost its deep sense of care. South Africa is at a critical point and the country can be changed if a deep sense of care can be embedded again.
About forty nursing educators from all over South Africa attended an exploratory workshop in the facility today and the last meeting of the Forum of University Deans in South Africa (FUNDISA) also coincided with the festivities at the School of Nursing.
Media Release
Issued by: Lacea Loader
Assistant Director: Media Liaison
Tel: 051 401 2584
Cell: 083 645 2454
E-mail: loaderl.stg@ufs.ac.za
13 November 2009