Latest News Archive

Please select Category, Year, and then Month to display items
Previous Archive
22 October 2024 | Story Precious Shamase and Bulelwa Moikwathai | Photo Supplied
DHET international scholarship sessions 2024
Bulelwa Moikwaikwatlhai , Assistant Director: International Office and Dr Temwa Moyo, acting Director for International Scholarships at DHET.

The University of the Free State (UFS) Qwaqwa Campus recently hosted two information sessions on international scholarships, led by the Department of Higher Education and Training (DHET). These sessions were initiated by the Office for international Affairs.

In his welcoming address during the first information session for campus heads of department, Campus Vice-Principal: Support Services, Teboho Manchu, expressed his enthusiasm for the event and its potential benefits for students and staff. He emphasised the importance of these sessions in fostering growth and development. “We are looking forward to these engagements and hope that they will benefit all of us. Please feel welcome. I would also like to thank the Office for International Affairs and all the colleagues who have been working with them to make this interaction possible.”

Dr Temwa Moyo, acting Director for International Scholarships at the DHET, gave a comprehensive presentation on Erasmus+ programmes, which provide universities with opportunities and funding to collaborate on curriculum development for new programmes, capacity building in higher education, and full scholarships for joint master’s degrees, to name a few.

“The UFS has a significant international footprint, including on the African continent. Our department’s role is to stimulate international collaboration among institutions and to strengthen national collaborations to share best practices and build networks and capacity. This is the idea of the Erasmus + programmes,” explained Dr Moyo.

The DHET representative emphasised the department’s commitment to fostering international collaboration among universities and institutions. He explained that the Erasmus+ programmes aim to empower institutions and capacitate them to engage globally.

In the second student-centred session, Prof Ralph Clark, Director of the Afromontane Research Unit, encouraged students to take advantage of these opportunities because they enhance one’s networks, perspectives, and knowledge, as well as provide a platform for students to participate in and contribute to conversations and activities aimed at addressing global challenges with societal impact. The event provided attendees with various international opportunities through the DHET to support their academic pursuits. Students and staff learned about the benefits of studying abroad, the requirements, and the application process. The DHET’s emphasis on institutional partnerships also highlights the possibility of enriching academic exchange and cultural experiences.

Overall, the DHET international scholarship sessions on the UFS Qwaqwa Campus were a resounding success, with both students and staff attending in numbers. These sessions inspired students and staff to explore the exciting possibilities of global engagements.

News Archive

Haemophilia home infusion workshop
2017-12-17


 Description: haemophilia Tags: Haemophilia, community, patient, clinical skills, training 

Parents receive training for homecare of their children with haemophilia.
Photo Supplied


Caregivers for haemophilia patients, and patients themselves from around the Free State and Northern Cape attended a home infusion workshop held by the Clinical Skills unit in the Faculty of Health Sciences in July 2017. “It felt liberating and I feel confident to give the factor to my son correctly,” said Amanda Chaba-Okeke, the mother of a young patient, at the workshop. Her son, also at the workshop, agreed. “It felt lovely and good to learn how to administer factor VIII.” 

Clinical skills to empower parents and communities

There were two concurrent sessions: one attended by doctors from the Haemophilia Treatment Centre, and the other attended by community members including factor VIII and XI recipients, caregivers and parents. The doctors’ meeting was shown informative videos and demonstrations on how to administer the newly devised factor VII and XI kit, and discussed the pressing need for trained nurses at local clinics. Dr Jaco Joubert, a haematologist, made an educational presentation to the community members.

The South African Haemophilia Foundation was represented by Mahlomola Sewolane, who gave a brief talk about the role of the organisation in relation to the condition. Meanwhile, procedural training in the simulation laboratory involved doctors and nurses helping participants to learn the procedures by using mannequins and even some volunteers from among the patients.

A medical condition causing serious complications
Haemophilia is a medical condition in which the ability of the blood to clot is severely impaired, even from a slight injury. The condition is typically caused by a hereditary lack of a coagulation factor, most often factor VIII. Usually patients must go through replacement therapy in which concentrates of clotting factor VIII (for haemophilia A) or clotting factor IX (for haemophilia B) are slowly dripped or injected into the vein, to help replace the clotting factor that is missing or low. Patients have to receive this treatment in hospital.

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