On 9 September 2025, the Faculty of Health Sciences celebrated its Graduation Ceremony. For the Division of Emergency Medicine, it was an especially meaningful occasion as several of our students walked across the stage to receive their degrees and diplomas.

Each graduate’s achievement represents not only a personal milestone but also a collective advancement in emergency care scholarship, systems, and leadership within Africa and abroad.

Master of Philosophy (MPhil) in Emergency Medicine

Nine students successfully completed the MPhil in Emergency Medicine. In addition to their extensive coursework, each graduate made a meaningful contribution to the growing body of emergency care knowledge through original research:

• Fabio Moreira – A descriptive study of acutely poisoned patients presenting to the Western Cape Emergency Medical Services
• Sinethemba Alphius Mgidi – An analysis of the isiXhosa telephonic descriptors of cardiac arrest in a Western Cape emergency control centre
• Nicole du Plessis – A description of the pattern of requests and utilisation of nasal continuous airway pressure (nCPAP) during ground transport of children younger than 13 years of age in the Western Cape Provincial Ambulance Service, South Africa
• Dewan Lombard – A qualitative exploration of the perceptions of Emergency Care Practitioners on their transition from student to independent practice
• Zamasiba Cynthia Dlamini – Emergency medical service personnel perceptions of research and evidence-based practice
• David Maraka Morudu – Assessing vicarious trauma and utilisation of psychological support services amongst prehospital emergency care providers in Limpopo Emergency Medical Services: A cross-sectional survey
• Christopher Morris – Prehospital pain management in mass casualty scenarios: A scoping review
• Ana Antunes – With distinction: A qualitative exploration of the perceptions and experiences of emergency care providers on delivering death notifications in the prehospital setting
• Omar Alrashed – The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and various lockdown levels on emergency medical services response times to trauma incidents in the Western Cape Province, South Africa

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) in Emergency Medicine

Five candidates were awarded their doctoral degrees, each contributing pioneering research to emergency medicine education, systems development, and clinical practice:

• Dr Abed Alra’oof Mohamad Saleem – Developing contextual quality standards for emergency departments in Palestine
• Dr Ken Ngoy Diango – Adapting a community first aid responder programme to increase out-of-hospital capacity in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo
• Dr Louis Chris van Rensburg – Initiating the development of a curriculum for South African adult critical care retrieval
• Dr Ryan Ernest Matthews – Shaping the undergraduate pain management curriculum in prehospital emergency care education: Toward a curriculum and competency framework for South Africa
• Dr Caleb Hanson Gage – The development of integrated palliative care and emergency medical services in South Africa

Postgraduate Diploma in Emergency Care

Two students graduated from the PGDip in Emergency Care, an important step in advancing clinical excellence and leadership within the field:

• Yasmin Le Roux
• Lolwethu Jannet Ngqabayi

A Message of Congratulations

The Division of Emergency Medicine extends heartfelt congratulations to all our graduates. Your commitment to advancing emergency care, improving patient outcomes, and strengthening health systems exemplifies the spirit of leadership and service that defines our discipline.

We look forward to seeing how you continue to make a difference within your communities, classrooms, and health systems across Africa and the world.