Democratic Nursing Organisation of South Africa

MEDIA ALERT

Monday, 18 December 2017 

The Democratic Nursing Organisation of South Africa (DENOSA), will be hosting the annual Marilyn Lahana Trust Caring Awards where it will announce the country’s most caring nurse out of nine finalists from provinces at the gala dinner to be held at Manhattan Hotel in Pretoria tonight 18 December. The winners (over-all winner, 1^st runner up and 2^nd runner up) will be handed with trophies, certificates and prize money. 

The awards are named after Marilyn Lahana, a Johannesburg nurse who contracted Ebola when she cared for a patient who was flown in from Gabon. The patient was a doctor who himself had contracted the virus from a patient he was caring for in Gabon. Marilyn was the first casualty of Ebola in South Africa. She died a few days later. DENOSA highlights her death, and subsequent annual awards which ensued in her honour 21 years ago, as a sign of nurses’ selflessness and dedication to total care of their patients and the ultimate prize any of them could pay while in pursuit of the patient care. 

Tonight’s event will see provincial Marilyn Lahana Awards winners competing for the national honour. 

The winners in provinces are nominated by patients, former patients, colleagues and members of the community.   

Members of the media are cordially invited to the Marilyn Lahana Awards Gala Dinner to report. For more information, contact Sibongiseni Delihlazo, DENOSA Communications Manager, on 072 584 4175. 

The details of the event are as follows:

DATE: Monday 18 December 2017 

VENUE: Manhattan Hotel, Pretoria 

TIME: 18h00 for 18h30

The nine provincial winners who will be competing as national finalists are:

Name: Bulelwa Constance Lamani

Institution: Dora Nginza Hospital

Position: Professional Nurse

Province: Eastern Cape

Bulelwa Lamani started her nursing career as a student nurse at Livingstone Hospital and got employed as an Enrolled Nurse at the same Hospital. She proceeded to do her Bridging course and Midwifery at Lilitha Nursing College. She worked at Dora Nginza Hospital from 1997. She then enrolled for Primary Health Care course and HIV and AIDS course. 

She was allocated to work at the chronic illness disease clinic where she developed passion in educating her patients about Diabetes both at clinic and community level. She gave awareness information about the condition to colleagues and using Radio to educate communities. She enhanced her skills by attending a Diabetiology course in Gauteng and worked in collaboration with local companies and pharmaceuticals that resulted in her being well vested on chronic diseases, especially Diabetes. She involved the in-house medical officer in advancing her capabilities. 

Presently she is a Diabetes Coordinator of Dora Nginza Hospital, sharing information with a multidisciplinary team to advance and develop both the community and colleagues. 

She contributed to community by giving talks on local radio station and sacrificed her time to extend her services to rural areas which are 3 hours from her institution, pushed by passion and selflessness. She organised tokens like T-shirts, caps and glucose test machine to award community members at her events to motivate them. She has been described by her colleague, who is a principal medical Social worker, as a diligent nurse who is eager to serve vulnerable patients, and that her soft tone and calm demeanor made her easily accessible to the poor and illiterate patients as they are not scared to approach her in times of need, relating to their ailments. 

She portrays Dora Nginza in a positive light when she not only demonstrated knowledge of the subject matter, but also people skills, with patients clamouring for more attention from the caring smiling nurse. She showed commitment and contribution to the employee by initiating a project that resulted in the institution employing a Podiatrist (foot doctor) after she attended a SEMSDA workshop.

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Name:  Tukisi Kagiso Prince

Category: Professional Nurse

Institution: Job Shimankana Tabane hospital

Province: North West 

Born and bred in the rural parts of Moses Kotane Sub-district in the North West, Tukisi Kagiso is a Professional Nurse with a Bachelor’s Degree in Nursing and has enrolled for a Masters’ in Nursing Science Advanced Midwifery. He specialised in Midwifery Science. 

The love and passion for nursing was a seed ploughed by his aunt. He was a babysitter for his aunt’s child from birth as the aunt had to resume her duties at the school where she was a temporary worker. He also got encouragement from the late Sr. M. Mmopi who noticed the caring culture and potential that Kagiso had when caring for his cousin.  

He started his work experience at his home village, Kraalhoek, where he performed his community service. He offered primary health care services as well as the mother and child services which were his preferred field of expertise. He was relocated to Job Shimankana Tabane Hospital. At this hospital, he requested to work in the Maternity ward where he performed beyond the expectations considering that he was from the rural clinic.

He is a hardworking, caring, dedicated, committed and a competent nurse. He shared his knowledge with the family, friends, colleagues and community at large. These characteristics are evident by the motivations from his aunt, former students, patients, colleagues, his mentor and his WhatsApp community members.  

He is described by his patients as their personal doctor as he is such an extraordinary nurse who goes beyond the call of duty. They say nursing to him is a calling, not a job. He is a nurse whose passion is complemented by competence and thoroughness to detail to ensure service excellence. 

The calmness in his voice and diligence that comes from mastering the art of midwifery have positioned Tukisi to be in maternity ward for years with no incident of negligence or mismanagement of his clients. All because of being a great team member and from doing only what is in the interest of women’s maternal health.

His philosophy of midwifery care and practice is that midwives have been extraordinarily blessed with opportunities to witness the most precious processes created by God which are pregnancy and child birth. They have unique specialised skill and talent fuelled by passion and love to facilitate these processes with great care and vigilance because a single mistake on their part can make a whole world of difference in the life of both the mother and the baby in their care. The mother – midwife relationship during the antenatal care and the prolonged period of standing and the use of the word ‘push’ are all motivated by the sigh of relief when they see the new born take that first breath and hear the vigorous cry signalling that a new life has been safely brought to earth. The celebratory tears rolling down the cheeks of a labouring woman heralds yet another addition not only to the family concerned, but to the general population as well. Midwives have the obligation to save the future of the nation.

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Name: Noko Johannes Ngoepe

Position: Professional Nurse

Institution: Mediclinic Limpopo

Province: Limpopo

Born in the beautiful Province of Limpopo at Early Dawn Village, Noko Johannes Ngoepe started his health care career in 2003, working as a care worker. In 2004 he trained as a Nursing Assistant and completed with distinctions. Noko proceeded to upgrade his qualification, and registered at the Ithemba Nursing Academy to train as an Enrolled Nurse in 2005. In 2006 he started working as an Enrolled Nurse at the Louis Pasteur Private Hospital. The ambitious and committed Noko continued with his academic studies and registered for the Bridging Course, at the Arwyp Medical Centre in 2009, where he also served as the President of the learners and as a Shop Steward. 

He completed his Bridging Course in 2011 and went back to work at the Louis Pasteur Private Hospital as a Registered Nurse. Noko completed his Bcur in Management and Education from UNISA, obtained a BA in Health Science and Social Services in 2013 from UNISA.

His passion for helping others, saw Noko ploughing back to the very community where he grew up. He started career expos, where he provided career guidance to matriculants at the very school that helped shape the person he has become.

Noko is currently a Professional Nurse and a Shop Steward at the Mediclinic in Limpopo. He continues to go beyond his nursing duties. His dedication to his profession and helping, not only the patients, but his fellow colleagues as well, saw him bestowed with the Excellence Award by his current employer, Mediclinic.

Noko is known by his colleagues as a committed and passionate professional who continues to remind his fellow workers to keep the nurses’ pledge on their minds as they go about their daily duties. He is known for his professional image and conduct, which he constantly tries to inculcate to his fellow colleagues.

Establishing caring relationships, warm, kind and sensitive approach is Noko’s motto. Working with a multidisciplinary team, Noko believes that interpersonal skills are critical to create a conducive, warm and happy working environment.

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Name: Dorothy Mamabolo-Loti

Institution: Community Primary Health Care Services

Category: Professional Nurse

Province: Gauteng

Dorothy is a committed and proactive professional specialising in Maternal and Child Nursing. She is the founder and one of the Directors of Community Primary Health Care Services (COPHCS) which is based in Dobsonville, Soweto. At the time this was founded, the district nursing services for the community had collapsed due to crime in the area. When Dorothy founded COPHCS, she brought with her a wealth of experience which she acquired during the 10 years she worked at Chris Hani Baragwanath Hospital. She was a Midwife, a lecturer and clinical tutor at Chris Hani Baragwanath Hospital, UNISA and at Witwatersrand University where she was also a consultant for Johnson & Johnson advising on Maternal and child health matters. 

She is a committed and proactive professional with a passion for leading, teaching and innovations. She is a well-seasoned, strategic, and proactive professional who is a catalyst for inspiring a collaboratively driven performance culture that engages all members of the workplace community in implementing new age, innovative, integrated people management solutions that will drive organizational success. She is a devoted nurse, midwife, administrator, educator and mentor, with strengths in people-driven growth, leadership, and organizational transformation and development that are aligned to strategic organizational objectives. She is highly achievement-driven, through commitment, teamwork, entrepreneurship, caring with kindness, ethics and integrity – aspiring to perform and deliver at the highest level of quality and national standards, and world-class professionalism.

In 2010 Dorothy expanded her services to the Genesis Clinic at birthing unit. Genesis Clinic is an active birth unit that combines the benefit of labouring and birthing outside of the pressure of a hospital environment which affords expectant mothers the necessary advantage of having immediate and first class medical care at hand should complications arise. The benefit expectant mother giving birth in a ‘homelike’ environment with the personal full support of the family, in a fully equipped private hospital at an affordable price has proven to be the best choice for expectant mothers. Dorothy is currently studying Doctoral Degree in Maternal and Child Nursing Science Neonatal. She provides unique contribution, caring for mothers and children, educate the families about health and promote the proper care for the health of both individuals and families. She is the first point of contact between the families and the overall health care systems.

She provides cost effective care which is easily accessible by all regardless of the financial position of the family or geographical location, social status and cultural background. Due to close contact with the families, she gets to know the families and individuals well. She provides holistic care to patients – physical, social, spiritual and psychological. She communicates with the medical and other health professions, in the interest of coordinated and total care, including continuity of care between home and hospital. She founded community primary health care which have combined the expertise and technology of hospitals with the essential comfort of the home to give mothers an alternative to hospitals and private hospitals. There is appreciation of the community about the quality of health care they receive at COPHCS; it’s effective, safe, efficient and caring. They complement the nurse-patio because the client is cared for by one midwife during Antenatal Care, delivery and postnatal care. The community also comments that the accessibility of COPHCS is good because it is near to the Dobsonville Provincial Clinic which can get overcrowded and hence clients find themselves queuing from 5am for Antenatal care services which is common at most Provincial Clinics.

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Name: Slindile Joyce Khumalo

Institution: Jolivet Clinic

Position: Professional Nurse

Province: KwaZulu-Natal

Slindile Joyce Khumalo started working at Jolivet Clinic after obtaining her degree in Nursing from University of KwaZulu-Natal. She previously worked at Clair Wood Hospital. During her nursing career, she developed passion for Nurse Initiated Management of Antiretroviral therapy (NIMART). She is involved in Youth and Adolescence Friendly Services. She is described by her subordinates as someone with good leadership qualities. She is a leader not a boss. She encourages her subordinates to develop themselves; stimulates love and passion within them. She motivates staff, patients and relatives when they have lost hope. As Community nurse, she is involved in community activities that has led to the advancement of community livelihood. She worked closely with church leaders in combating the spread of HIV/AIDS. This is evident by a church next to the clinic where she works. In that church, holy water is used to heal HIV and that belief has resulted in community members being reluctant to attend clinic and take ARVs. Due to Slindisile’s commitment and humility, she continued to support and educate both church leaders and congregants on HIV/AIDS and resulted in community members understanding the disease and enrolled in the ARVs programme as per the need. 

She has worked in rural areas where there is poor infrastructure and less opportunities and resources. She walks to patients at home to deliver medicines and to render essential Primary Health Care services to her community. She is a member of the Health promoting team whereby she assists old citizens with playing golden games. They exercise in community sport field three times a week.

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Name: Angelina Vermeulen

Institution: Itekeng Support Group 24/7 Care Centre

Position: Professional Nurse

Province: Free State

Born on a farm in Heilbron in the Free State, Angelina is a Professional Nurse with a Bachelor’s Degree in Nursing. She is the founder and managing director of Itekeng Support Group 24/7 Care Centre, which she established in 2001.

Angelina has a passion for writing. She started her writing journey as early as 2006, and has written poems on HIV/AIDS which are aimed at educating the community and breastfeeding mothers on breast milk.

The GOD fearing Angelina draws her inspiration from the book of 1 Timothy 4; 6 which she quotes as “keep attention to all you learned and your teaching. Preserve /Persist in them, for by doing so, you will save both yourself and those who listen to you”

Motivated and encouraged by Dr Elise Esterhuizen and her brother Petros Modise Mofokeng, who himself is an author of a book titled “The Life Changing Decision”, Angelina continued to profile her patients and the impact of her daily efforts.

Angelina’s professional contribution goes far and beyond the clinical bedside nursing. She dedicates her professional skills and knowledge to further educate fellow health workers. She has written a number of short story books to assist NGOs managers regardless of their professional status. These user-friendly story books serve as case studies, on how to assess and manage the most basic cases. They further assist with the process of admitting patients to the discharge process.

Angelina’s warm, caring charisma has seen her dedicate her time to visiting bed-ridden patients at their homes. Her passion to impart knowledge has also seen her visit schools and assisting school children with their school work.

Her selfless personality and efforts, has not gone unnoticed by her fellow colleagues. This has inspired other nurses working alongside Angelina to nominate her as the nurse of excellence, caring and sensitive to others’ needs.

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Name: Oupa Dominic Mbuyane

Institution: Mthimba Clinic

Category: Professional Nurse

Province: Mpumalanga

Oupa started his career at Marikuna Agricultural centre in Tzaneen where he undergone a course in Agriculture. He then enrolled at Themba Nursing School as an Enrolled Nursing Auxiliary, proceded to be an Enrolled Nurse in 2000 and completed his Bridging course in 2008 and registered as Professional Nurse. In 2013 he obtained his diploma in Midwifery.

He worked in Themba Hospital, then transferred to Mthimba Clinic. 

Oupa is passionate and committed in helping others. This is shown by him being a Tuberculosis (TB) focal person. He arrives early in the clinic to assist clients who are collecting their medication to be helped on time for them to go to their workplace. He conducted a Centralised Chronic Medication Dispensing and Distribution (CCMDD) programme that aimed in reducing waiting times; improved access to chronic medication; clients accessing chronic medicines closer to their homes; decongests health facilities; reduced health provider workload and improved client satisfaction. Because of this programme, Oupa has time to attend to very sick MDT - TB patients at home who need care.

He shares his experience and knowledge with his colleagues and community by giving in – service trainings to staff and health education to the community members including in church. He is involved in community development and empowerment projects. He was awarded a certificate of appreciation for his contribution in the community by Hon. MEC P. Ngomane from Department of Community Security and Liaison this year. One of the residents of his community said the following about Oupa: “Mr Mbuyane Oupa D. is a humble, well respected and marvellous man. He lives by example of greeting his neighbours every day. He devotes his time to his neighbours who are bereaved. He has the potential to bring members of the community together. He is kind, soft spoken and generous gentleman. He hates gossip and fights. Mr Mbuyane is a hard worker and attends community meetings of Numbi…….” During the 67 minutes of Mandela day, Oupa contributes by fetching water for his neighbours who are ill and fragile. He always gives love to his clients and community at large.

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Name: Engela Maria Cornelia Smit

Institution: Vosburg CHC

Category: Professional Nurse

Province: Northern Cape

Engela Smit started her nursing career as a General Nurse in 1973 at Kimberley hospital. She proceeded to do her Midwifery Diploma in Kimberley and passed with distinction in 1974. She completed Primary Clinical Care for nurses at Henrietta Stockdale College with distinction in 1997.

She worked as a Professional Nurse in different units and that provided her with extensive experience and exposure in nursing and resulted in her being an Operational Manager in 2000. She is a manager who is willing to listen to staff problems even personal matters, motivate staff to be positive in the workplace.

Engela worked in Vosburg, a small Karoo town, a place that attracts few nurses, doctors and other members of the multidisciplinary team. Working as a professional nurse in this small rural town, Engela had to wear hats of a Counsellor, Educator, Advocate, Facilitator, Caregiver and Social-worker. Working at the Vosburg clinic she serves the community and also renderes service to nearby farms and the local school. 

She is a team leader of the WBOTS workers. She organised health days in the community to promote healthy lifestyle to chronic patients, Antenatal care and information on different health issues, and take part in events on Woman’s’ day.  She also does Health Promotion when clients routinely visit clinic for minor illness or follow up visits.  She motivates patients to take responsibility for their own health. Alcohol abuse is a major problem in her town. She created a poster to give information of the dangers of abuse, FAS and even created a mock up “doll” named “Drankduiwel”. Her selflessness is noted in her sacrificing for her community even beyond the call of duty. Engela took the responsibility to start the emergency generator during Eskom power failures and fill up the diesel as needed.  The clinic has the only mortuary in town and must keep operating during power failures. In case of emergency transfers, she escorts patients in the ambulance and is on duty the following day. During 2016/2017 she delivered 2 babies at night in the squatter camp while the ambulance driver held a candle and cellphone light.  The ladies was taken to the clinic after they delivered – both mothers and babies were safe.

She is described by her clients as a caring, committed and selfless nurse and these qualities are attested by her having to provide meals, soup/Cool-drinks and sandwiches to patients who stayed for observatory in clinic and community members on Health / open days using her own funds. She

contributed to her community by knitting caps and vests for premature babies. She organised and shared that skill with mothers in the community to assist with this project.

Due to her hard working and leading a team in an effective and efficient way; the clinic obtained Platinum status in October 2016 in Ideal clinic evaluation.  In the first evaluation 2014 – 2016 there was an improvement from 48% to 97%. For three times she was a member of the team for evaluation for Ideal Clinic in Kareeberg and Ubuntu sub-districts. During her leadership Vosburg achieved Silver status (2004) and Bronze status (2005) in the Premier Excellence Awards. In 2010 Vosburg received a certificate for Outstanding Achievement in the HIV campaign.

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Name: Xoliswa S Motolwana