Skip to main content
- Where are you from, originally? Ie where were you born and where did you grow up?
- I was born in Kwazulu-Natal and raised in the small towns of Jozini and Manguzi which are in the far north of KZN, close to the border of Mozambique and Swaziland.
- What influenced your decision to pursue a medical career? Was it a person, circumstances, family experiences….a combination of all these?
- I wanted to “do” medicine from a very young age. My grandfather, Johannes “Masongwevu” Gina, was an induna (sub-chief) who started several community projects, including schools, a church and community clinics. One of the clinics was just outside our homestead, so, as children, we had early exposure to missionary doctors and nurses who worked in the clinic alongside our home. I hoped that one day I would work in the same clinic my grandfather built. In those days such projects were built by community members, and missionaries, together with the government, would offer operational services. In the early 1990s I used to see really emaciated patients making their way to the clinic. That sight alone used to bother me, seeing such severely ill individuals who eventually died as most of them had AIDS before the era of ARVs. I wanted to understand more about this ailment and to be part of the solution to alleviate such suffering. That, too, motivated me to study medicine.
- Where do you hope to be in 5-7 years’ time? What is your ideal career path?
- I would like to establish a translational pleural disease research unit focusing mainly on TB pleural disease . Subsequently, this will improve conventional practices, save lives, reduce morbidity, costs, and enhance the quality of life in many aspects of pleural disease.
- What inspires you to overcome obstacles? Medicine is a very challenging career…how did you get to be where you are?
- I am always inspired by UN sustainable developmental goals, especially Goal 3 which speaks of ensuring healthy lives and promoting the well-being for all at all ages which is essential to sustainable development. Working towards this goal makes me feel like I’m part of something bigger, and working and living for a greater purpose on this planet. I think I got where I am because of very good mentorship, social support, hard work and prayer.
- What do you do in your time off-duty? What are the hobbies/pastimes that you try to engage in when not at work?
- Spending more time in nature is what revitalises me. I enjoy hiking, chasing waterfalls, rivers, lakes and summits in my spare time.
- If Medicine didn’t work out for you…..what career path do you think you would have explored? Dare to dream
- I would have been a pastor in the Methodist Church. I considered taking bible studies if I had not been accepted into medicine. I had always been fascinated by bible stories in my youth, especially how Jesus Christ used to heal the sick. The problem, however, was that in my Methodist church I never saw anyone being healed by prayer. That is why I opted for a scientific career.