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Health care
Those who took part in the community engagements are: From left Dr Kamo Mothibi from the UFS, Irene Mokgadi from CUT, Dr Mosebi Thejane (UFS), Ahlume Nkumbesi (UFS), Dr Lebogang Mogongoa (CUT), Minnie Mbokazi (UFS), Dr Happy Phage (CUT), Dr Phindile Shangase (UFS) and Teboho Mhlanga from the Free State Department of Health. Seated in from are Meshack Mothupi, driver from CUT, and Sipho Zulu (UFS).

The Division of Public Health at the University of the Free State (UFS) together with the Central University of Technology (CUT), and the Free State Department of Health’s Disability Unit, held community engagements recently by visiting rehabilitation services in Bloemfontein. 

These engagements were part of the co-funded project: Capacity building for the use of implementation science in various typologies in low- and middle-income countries for the prevention and/or management of the quadruple burden of disease. This was phase two in this project with the last phase including a symposium that is expected to take place on 1 April on the UFS Bloemfontein Campus.

Qhomane Mhlanga, a representative from the Free State Department of Health who is actively involved in this project, and her team, identified rehabilitation services for a case study. They also identified stakeholders to be visited during this community engagement in order to gather information on their engagement with Mangaung University of the Free State Community Partnership Programme (MUCPP). The team also visited stakeholders at the Phelang Disability Home, Carel du Toit Special School, and the Department of Education (Inclusive Education). 

 

Research to improve health care service

Dr Phindile Shangase from the Division of Public Health, and Principal Investigator at UFS, says the purpose of community visits was to engage service providers on the implementation strategies. This includes analysing alignment of implementation strategies with the policy (National Rehabilitation Policy 2000, Free State Rehabilitation Policy Guidelines, Framework and Strategy for Disability and Rehabilitation Service in South Africa 2015-2020) as well as identifying facilitators and barriers to implementation.

“It is the intention of the Division of Public Health, UFS to continue collaborations with stakeholders in implementation science research to improve health care service delivery and outcomes. The Division of Public Health also intends to add postgraduate research studies on implementation science in the near future.

“The visit to the clinic sought to establish the services provided by the rehabilitation unit, the referral system, and how the unit collaborates with external stakeholders to enhance the service. We gained knowledge of categories of healthcare professionals in rehabilitation services, e.g., occupational therapists, physiotherapists, speech and language therapists, audiologists, orthotists and prosthetists, rehabilitation doctors, optometrists, community rehabilitation workers. Some of these professionals are not available in the facilities visited,” says Dr Shangase. 

It was identified that, she continues, early hearing screening services for children are not available at healthcare facilities. Early hearing screening helps identify hearing defects which could be managed early to avoid complications that lead to hampered education and poor quality of life.


Outcome of engagements

Before the community outreach began, the UFS/CUT team, in collaboration with the Department of Health, convened to discuss strategies for navigating the Implementation Science project. The meeting focused on identifying key stakeholders and developing approaches essential for the project's success, drawing insights from the Department of Health's Mangaung Metro implementation science case study. 

The team identified five primary approaches for the project: Health, Education, Livelihood, Social, and Empowerment. Additionally, the discussion highlighted both the barriers and enablers related to each approach, which are crucial for ensuring effective project implementation and sustainable outcomes. Free State rehabilitation policy guidelines document was also applied to evaluate the case study.

According to Dr Shangase, the outreach will help with drafting of an intervention plan to address policy implementation gaps identified. The information gathered will assist in commissioning further research to improve health outcomes. “The intention is to collaborate with the Department of Health to work on past research outputs, presented during research day conferences, for implementation in healthcare facilities. Newly identified research areas will also prompt projects in healthcare facilities, led by the academic partners, UFS, Division of Public Health as well as the Department of Health Sciences, CUT.”

News Archive

Boyden Observatory turns 120
2009-05-13

 

At the celebration of the 120th year of existence of the UFS's Boyden Observatory are, from the left: Prof. Herman van Schalkwyk, Dean: Faculty of Natural and Agricultural Sciences at the UFS, Prof. Driekie Hay, Vice-Rector: Academic Planning at the UFS, Mr Ian Heyns from AngloGold Ashanti and his wife, Cheryl, and Prof. François Retief, former rector of the UFS and patron of the Friends of Boyden.
Photo: Hannes Pieterse

The Boyden Observatory, one of the oldest observatories in the Southern Hemisphere and a prominent beacon in Bloemfontein, recently celebrated its 120th year of existence.

This milestone was celebrated by staff, students, other dignitaries of the University of the Free State (UFS) and special guests at the observatory last week.

“The observatory provides the Free State with a unique scientific, educational and tourist facility. No other city in South Africa, and few in the world, has a public observatory with telescopes the size and quality of those at Boyden,” said Prof. Herman van Schalkwyk, Dean of the Faculty of Natural and Agricultural Sciences at the UFS.

The observatory, boasting the third-largest optical telescope in South Africa, has a long and illustrious history. It was established on a temporary site on Mount Harvard near the small town of Chosica, Peru in 1889. Later it was moved to Arequipa in Peru where important astronomical observations were made from 1891 to 1926. “However, due to unstable weather patterns and observing conditions, it was decided to move the Boyden Station to another site somewhere else in the Southern Hemisphere, maybe South Africa,” said Prof. Van Schalkwyk.

South Africa's excellent climatic conditions were fairly well known and in 1927 the instruments were shipped and the Boyden Station was set up next to Maselspoort near Bloemfontein. Observations began in September 1927 and in 1933 the new site was officially completed, including the 60 inch (1.5 m) telescope, which was then the largest optical telescope in the Southern Hemisphere. This telescope was recently refurbished to a modern research instrument.

The observatory has various other telescopes and one of them, the 13" refractor telescope, which was sent to Arequipa in 1891 and later to Bloemfontein, is still in an excellent condition. Another important telescope is the Watcher Robotic Telescope of the University College Dublin, which conducts many successful observations of gamma ray bursts.

“In the first few decades of the twentieth century, the Boyden Observatory contributed considerably to our understanding of the secrets of the universe at large. The period luminosity relationship of the Cepheid variable stars was, for example, discovered from observations obtained at Boyden. This relationship is one of the cornerstones of modern astrophysics. It is currently used to make estimates of the size and age of the universe from observations of the Hubble Space Telescope,” said Prof. Van Schalkwyk.

“The Boyden Observatory contributed to the university’s astrophysics research group being able to produce the first M.Sc. degrees associated with the National Space Science Programme (NASSAP) in the country and the Boyden Science Centre plays an important role in science and technology awareness of learners, teachers and the general public,” said Prof. Van Schalkwyk.

The Boyden Science Centre has also formed strong relationships with various institutions, including the South African Agency for the Advancement of Science and Technology (SAASTA) and the Department of Science and Technology. The centre has already conducted many different projects for the Department of Science and Technology, including National Science Week projects, as well as National Astronomy Month projects. It also serves as one of the hosts of SAASTA’s annual Astronomy Quiz.

Media Release:
Lacea Loader
Assistant Director: Media Liaison
Tel: 051 401 2584
Cell: 083 645 2454
E-mail: loaderl.stg@ufs.ac.za
13 May 2009
 

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