MEDIA RELEASE
Thursday, 14 December 2023.
PRETORIA – Professional Nurse from Niekerkshoop Clinic in the Pixley ka Seme District in Northern Cape, Elizabeth Fourie, was announced as South Africa’s Most Caring Nurse for 2023 and awarded with the Marilyn Lahana Caring Award at the DENOSA National Awards gala dinner held at the Sheraton Hotel in Pretoria last night.
She took home the award, with a prize money of R10 000. In second place as a first runner-up was Brenda Nkateko Shilubane, a nurse at Mary Moodley CHC in Benoni in the Ekurhuleni District, who took home the first runner-up award and a prize money of R7000. In third place as a second runner-up was Esther Phasha, a nurse at Witbank Hospital in Mpumalanga who took home the second runner-up award with a prize money of R5000.
The awards recognize a nurse who, in the course of their work, showed commitment, dedication and selflessness in caring for the patients. The awards are administered by DENOSA in collaboration with the Marilyn Lahana Trust in the name of nurse Marilyn Lahana, who contracted Ebola while caring for a patient at a Johannesburg hospital in 1996. She died a few days later, having shown the most selflessness and total dedication to the care of her patient in line with the nurses’ pledge of service.
Sister Fourie is the Operational Manager at Niekerkshoop Clinic, in the Pixley ka Seme District in Northern Cape, a province whose health budget is often faced with constant budgetary constraints. The province has had its health budget cut by millions of rands each year.
But Sister Fourie has not allowed this to come between her care for her patients. Her colleagues at the facility all agree that she gives 100% clinical services to her patients in the community of Niekerkshoop in the Pixley ka Seme District and attends to her administrative work seamlessly. The pride she takes in her work inspires the rest of her team to also put in the hard work to serve the community.
Sister Tokkie, as she is affectionately known, is always willing to walk the extra mile doing home visits, working overtime and being on call 24/7, driving to Niekerkshoop if she is needed in an emergency case.
Using her private car, she often transports emergency cases to Prieska whenever there is an opportunity to save a life. In one incident, where she showed commitment while driving to Niekerkshoop at night in one case of emergency, her car broke down and she had to work in a toilet in one of the nearby houses to try and save a newborn baby’s life. She always puts her patients first, without considering at what cost to herself. She constantly participates in all community outreach programmes.
DENOSA reiterates that the excellent work that is shown by sister Fourie is indicative of the presence of selfless caring amongst nursing professionals, which is living proof that the spirit of care as shown by Marilyn Lahana still lives on.
Once again, nurses have proven this year that their nursing excellence can lead to prolonged life for patients, if well supported in their work. South Africa administers the world’s biggest HIV management programme, the Anti-retroviral Therapy (ART) programme which is nurse-led, with 7,8 million people who are HIV+ on the programme. The results are a cause for a smile. This ensures that patients live longer and are more active in the country’s economy.
Of the UNAIDS 95-95-95 targets for countries by year 2025, South Africa is very close to reaching its target with the current performance score of 90-91-94 (meaning out of the total number of people who are HIV+ in the country, at least 90% of them know their HIV status; and of those who know their status, 91% of them are on the ART programme; and of those on the ART programme, at least 94% of them are virally suppressed).
Similar excellence in other healthcare areas can also be apportioned to nursing excellence although resource constraints are a constant challenge in the country’s healthcare facilities.
During the recent COVID-19 pandemic, the nurses proved yet again how resilient the healthcare system was as more than 40 million South Africans were vaccinated, and the country registered a commendable and excellent recovery rate as most patients rejoined with their families after admission.
DENOSA congratulates all the nine winners who represented their provinces at the National Finals in Pretoria last night. DENOSA particularly congratulates sister Fourie, who emerged victorious and comes from one of the most challenged towns and districts in the country. Her victory is living proof that nurses are resilient and continue to be the backbone of healthcare.
End.
Issued by DENOSA.
For more information and interview requests for Elizabeth Fourie, contact: 076 509 7075.
Or
Sibongiseni Delihlazo, DENOSA Spokesperson.
Mobile: 072 584 4175.
Tel: 012 343 2315.
Website: www.denosa.org.za
Facebook: DENOSA National Page.
Twitter: @DENOSAORG
Instagram: Denosa_official.