The University of the Free State’s (UFS) new Postgraduate Simulation Unit represents a commitment to ensuring that healthcare professionals are thoroughly prepared before treating patients in high-pressure clinical environments. It is a promise made practical.
This is according to Prof Hester C. Klopper, UFS Vice-Chancellor and Principal, who opened the unit during the official launch event at the Faculty of Health Sciences on Thursday (6 August 2026). This unit marks a significant milestone in specialist healthcare education and reaffirming its commitment to improving patient care through innovation, research, and advanced clinical training.
"When patients place their lives and well-being in the hands of a healthcare professional, that professional should be as well prepared as we can possibly make them. Their competence should be developed, tested, and refined before the most demanding clinical moment arrives.
“That responsibility begins with education. It is strengthened by research, innovation, and partnerships between universities and health systems. This unit gives practical expression to the University of the Free State’s commitment to responsible societal futures,” Prof Klopper said in her keynote address.
According to her, this means safer care, professionals who are better prepared for complexity, and knowledge that makes a difference for patients, families, and communities.
The R35 million purpose-built facility is the first postgraduate healthcare simulation unit dedicated to specialist training in the Free State and Northern Cape. It builds on almost a decade of UFS experience in simulation-based education and responds to the growing demand for highly skilled healthcare professionals in an increasingly complex healthcare environment.
Research impact in action
Prof Reddy said research impact is the real-world benefit research creates for individuals, communities, professions and society. It is a journey from knowledge generation to meaningful change.
“For me, the Postgraduate Simulation Unit demonstrates a futuristic opportunity about how research, innovation and postgraduate education can combine to create impact. It reflects our commitment to ensuring that research translates into practice, capability and societal benefit. In health sciences, impact is realised when evidence improves patient care, clinical decision-making and health outcomes,” said Prof Reddy.
Talking about research impact in action, Prof Reddy said in just three months, the unit has supported more than 480 postgraduate students through workshops, many held over weekends and after hours. The facility has also attracted R1.5 million in additional funding, reflecting confidence in its value and future impact.
“The unit provides 24-hour access, enabling students to learn, practise and innovate whenever opportunities arise. The Unit’s 3D resin-printing technology converts CT scans into anatomically accurate models of hearts and bones. These models help students visualise complex anatomy and engage in patient-specific learning. The technology strengthens the link between medical imaging, research, teaching and clinical practice. As the first initiative of its kind in the country, it has already inspired similar investments at other medical schools.”
A purpose-built, technologically advanced facility
According to Prof Phetlhu, they did not just unveil a new facility, they opened doors to a new era of opportunity for the faculty’s postgraduate students. This unit represents a promise to them and, through them, to the communities they will serve across the Free State, South Africa, and beyond.
“As the Dean of the Faculty of Health Sciences, I am incredibly proud that this unit stands as a testament to our belief in responsible societal futures. It is a tangible expression of our commitment to moving beyond theory and providing the practical, high-fidelity environment our students need to thrive in an increasingly complex healthcare landscape.
“This is not simply a room with mannequins. This is a purpose-built, technologically advanced facility designed specifically for advanced specialist training. Within these walls, we have created a suite of immersive learning environments. We have high-fidelity simulation rooms that replicate the intensity of operating theatres, intensive care units, and emergency wards.”
Prof Phetlhu informed those in attendance that students will encounter fully responsive, computer-controlled mannequins that breathe, bleed, and react to clinical interventions in real-time. The unit has dedicated skills laboratories for surgical and procedural training, as well as audio-visual debriefing rooms equipped with advanced recording technology. This allows for the “stop, rewind, and review” process that is so critical to reflective learning, where students can watch their own performance, receive structured feedback, and refine their techniques in a safe, supportive environment.
This unit, the Dean continued, is for the postgraduate students, specialist and subspecialists (MMed & MPhil) who will train here annually. It is for the surgical and medical disciplines, for the allied health professions, and for the researchers who will use this space as a living laboratory. It is a space where they will learn not just technical skills, but also the crucial teamwork, leadership, and communication needed to provide safe, compassionate care. It is a space where they can make mistakes without consequence, so they can perform with precision when it truly matters.
Better training leads to better patient care
Mahlatsi said simulation-based medical education is recognised internationally as one of the most effective approaches to postgraduate clinical training. It allows doctors and other healthcare professionals to develop advanced clinical skills, practise complex procedures and manage medical emergencies in a safe environment before treating patients.
“Every specialist who graduates with enhanced skills contributes to safer surgeries, improved emergency care, better maternal and neonatal outcomes, and stronger clinical services throughout our province. One of the Free State Department of Health’s strategic priorities is strengthening specialist and subspecialist training. Our province requires specialists in disciplines such as surgery, internal medicine, paediatrics, obstetrics and gynaecology, anaesthesiology, emergency medicine, psychiatry and family medicine.
“The Postgraduate Simulation Unit provides exactly the kind of environment needed to achieve these goals. It enables registrars to repeatedly practise advanced procedures, refine decision-making and prepare for rare, high-risk clinical situations before entering real clinical settings. Equally important, this facility strengthens our ability to retain skilled healthcare professionals,” the MEC said.
According to him, the establishment of this Simulation Unit also positions the University of the Free State as a national leader in postgraduate clinical education. With advanced simulation technology, virtual learning platforms, skills laboratories and opportunities for research and innovation, this facility will produce graduates who are equipped to meet international standards while addressing South Africa’s unique healthcare challenges.
It will also strengthen collaboration between government, academia and healthcare professionals, ensuring that education remains closely aligned with the realities of clinical service delivery.
“Every investment in education is ultimately an investment in patients. Every healthcare professional trained here will touch thousands of lives throughout their career. Every skill mastered in this facility has the potential to save lives in an operating theatre, an emergency department, a maternity ward or a rural clinic. That is why this investment matters.”
One of Africa’s leading centres for postgraduate simulation-based education
Prof Klopper said this unit brings education, clinical practice, and research into one environment. Here, researchers and clinicians can test new approaches to teaching, evaluate emerging technologies responsibly, and refine clinical procedures.
“Just as importantly, they can pursue questions that arise directly from healthcare practice. That makes this unit a living laboratory. We want our researchers and clinicians to engage with the best knowledge and technology available globally. At the same time, we must ask our own questions and generate evidence from our own context.
“Healthcare systems across Africa face realities that cannot always be understood or solved by importing answers developed elsewhere. As a university in Africa – rooted in the heart of South Africa – the University of the Free State has both an opportunity and a responsibility. We must contribute knowledge that is scientifically rigorous, contextually relevant, and useful where it is most needed.”
For Prof Klopper, the ambition is for this unit to become one of Africa’s leading centres for postgraduate simulation-based education, specialist training, research, and innovation.