Tag: Women in medicine

This week on Womanity, Dr Amaleya Goneos-Malka speaks with Professor Mashiko Setshedi, Head of the Department of Medicine at the University of Cape Town and Groote Schuur Hospital, she is a leading gastroenterologist, educator, and researcher shaping the future of healthcare in South Africa and developing the next generation of healthcare professionals. From Aspiring Lawyer to Medical Leader Prof. Setshedi shares the unexpected path that led her into medicine. Initially intending to pursue a career in law, a medical school acceptance changed the course of her life. What followed was a deep passion for medicine and a career-defining moment when two influential female professors recognised her potential and encouraged her to pursue internal medicine. Exploring the “Second Brain”: The Fascinating World of Gastroenterology Prof. Setshedi explains why the gastrointestinal system is often referred to as the body's "second brain," emphasising its critical role in immunity, nutrition, disease prevention and overall wellbeing. She discusses groundbreaking advances in the field, including: Precision medicine tailored to individual patients. New treatments for inflammatory bowel disease. Minimally invasive procedures replacing traditional surgery. AI-assisted diagnostic technologies that improve accuracy and patient outcomes. Choosing Leadership Over Comfort Prof. Setshedi's reflects on the difficult decision to step away from some of her direct clinical and research ambitions to lead an entire department. While the move required sacrifice, it ultimately aligned with a deeper sense of purpose: creating lasting impact through education, staff development, culture-building and institutional transformation. Her experience illustrates that leadership often requires embracing opportunities before we feel fully ready for them. Rebuilding Culture Through Compassion and Collaboration Having inherited a high-performing department, Prof. Setshedi chose not to focus solely on technical excellence. Instead, she identified a deeper need: healing and reconnecting a community affected by years of disruption, including student protests, leadership losses, the COVID-19 pandemic and resource constraints. Her leadership philosophy centres on: Collaboration over hierarchy. Listening before directing. Creating environments where people feel valued and heard. Building cultures of belonging, trust and inclusion. She argues that when people feel supported and connected, excellence naturally follows. Transforming Medical Education for a New Generation Teaching remains one of Prof. Setshedi's greatest passions. She speaks candidly about the need to rethink how doctors are trained, moving away from outdated teaching methods based on intimidation and hierarchy. Her vision for medical education includes: Human-centred learning. Greater empathy and cultural competence. Stronger partnerships between doctors and patients. Curriculum reform that reflects African realities. Using AI to streamline learning and reduce information overload. She believes future healthcare professionals must not only be clinically competent but also deeply compassionate, understanding that medicine is fundamentally a profession of service. Women in Leadership: Progress and Persistent Challenges In our discussion on gender representation in medicine, Prof. Setshedi notes that women often equal or outnumber men at undergraduate level, yet remain underrepresented in senior leadership positions. She explores several contributing factors: Limited succession planning. Lack of sponsorship and advocacy. Structural barriers. Women's tendency to underestimate their own readiness for leadership roles. Importantly, she calls for intentional efforts to identify, support and develop future women leaders, emphasising that talent alone is not enough without opportunity and encouragement. Defining Success on Your Own Terms When asked about the keys to her success, Prof. Setshedi offers a powerful perspective: success must be personally defined. Rather than measuring achievement through external markers, she encourages individuals to ask: "Am I a better person today than I was yesterday?" For her, true success lies in continuous growth, meaningful contribution and service to others. She cautions against comparing oneself to others and instead advocates "running your own race" while remaining true to your values and purpose. A Message to Young Women Across Africa Closing the conversation, Prof. Setshedi delivers an uplifting message to girls and young women: Believe in your abilities. Do not allow self-doubt to define your future. Learn from the experiences of others. Embrace your individuality. Focus on becoming the best version of yourself. Seek support when needed and remain open to growth. Every woman possesses unique gifts and perspectives that the world needs. Success begins when we stop comparing ourselves to others and start believing in our own potential. Tune in for more…

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June 4, 2026

Professor Mashiko Setshedi – Head of Medicine at the University of Cape Town and Groote Schuur Hospital

This week on Womanity, Dr Amaleya Goneos-Malka speaks with Professor Mashiko Setshedi, Head of the Department of Medicine at the University of Cape Town and Groote Schuur Hospital, she is a leading gastroenterologist, ...

This week on Womanity – Women in Unity, Dr. Amaleya Goneos-Malka speaks with Dr. Francisca van der Schyff — one of South Africa’s few abdominal organ transplant surgeons, working out of Wits University’s Donald Gordon Medical Centre. A true pioneer in her field, Dr. van der Schyff performs life-saving kidney and liver transplants for both children and adults. She also serves as the President of the South African Transplant Society and is a Fellow of the European Board of Transplant Surgeons. Dr. van der Schyff takes us on a journey through her route into medicine, sharing how her desire to alleviate human suffering led her first into general surgery and later into the highly specialised world of transplant medicine. It was during her time in paediatric surgery that she encountered children with liver conditions such as biliary atresia, who could only survive through liver transplantation. She describes the heartbreak of seeing willing parents beside their sick children, unknowingly carrying within them the cure — a piece of their own liver. This insight sparked her determination to train further and specialise in transplant surgery. In this interview, Dr. van der Schyff demystifies the process of organ transplantation — explaining how liver transplants from living donors, especially in children, can offer a second chance at life with relatively little long-term impact on the donor. She also discusses the misconceptions and fears surrounding organ donation, both from deceased and living donors, and passionately advocates for more education, awareness, and support to address South Africa’s chronic shortage of organ donors. One of the most poignant moments in the episode is when she shares a real-life story of performing two emergency liver transplants for children on Christmas Eve. While one child’s life was saved thanks to a brave father who overcame his fear to donate part of his liver, the other child tragically passed away because his father, although willing, couldn’t face the procedure in time. The emotional weight of this moment continues to fuel her mission for systemic change and public understanding. As the head of the South African Transplant Society, Dr. van der Schyff outlines her vision to unify the country’s fragmented transplant services and foster collaboration among diverse teams — including surgeons, psychologists, palliative care specialists, coordinators, and social workers. She highlights the critical importance of multidisciplinary teamwork, humility in leadership, and valuing every voice in a patient’s care journey. From a gender lens, Dr. van der Schyff shares personal reflections on growing up in a home where both her mother and father contributed equally to family and work — a model that shaped her expectations and her own life. She offers candid advice to young women in medicine: to choose life partners wisely, acknowledge that some sacrifices are inevitable in high-performance careers, and to define success through service, not perfection. She stresses that self-belief is not inborn but cultivated — through discipline, persistence, and doing hard things that make us proud of ourselves. Listeners will be inspired by her grounded wisdom and unwavering sense of purpose — rooted in a belief that true fulfilment comes from alleviating suffering and being of service to others. She reminds us that female traits — such as empathy, emotional intelligence, and resilience — are not liabilities in surgery, but superpowers. This is an episode about science, but it’s also about humanity. About leadership, courage, and legacy. About what it means to live a meaningful life in the service of others. Tune in for more…

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April 22, 2025

Dr. Francisca van der Schyff – President of the South African Transplant Society & Organ transplant surgeon – Donald Gordon Medical Centre

This week on Womanity – Women in Unity, Dr. Amaleya Goneos-Malka speaks with Dr. Francisca van der Schyff — one of South Africa’s few abdominal organ transplant surgeons, working out of Wits University’s Donald G...

This week on Womanity – Women in Unity, Dr. Amaleya Goneos-Malka talks to Dr. Annette Antwi-Anyimadu, a specialist psychiatrist in private practice at The Couch in Johannesburg, South Africa. Dr. Antwi-Anyimadu offers insights into the intricate connection between mental and physical health, reflecting on the World Health Organization’s holistic definition of health as "a state of complete physical, mental, and social well-being." Dr. Antwi-Anyimadu differentiates between the fields of psychiatry and psychology, explaining psychiatry's focus on diagnosing and treating mental health conditions through a medical lens and psychology's emphasis on behavioral studies and talk therapy. She highlights a range of psychiatric conditions she encounters, from mood disorders like depression and bipolar disorder to geriatric conditions and notes the complex interplay between genetics and environment on mental health ailments. This episode delves deeply into the societal stigma surrounding mental health, particularly among men, and the harmful consequences of unprocessed emotions, such as physical assaults on partners. Dr. Antwi-Anyimadu also explores gendered differences in susceptibility to mental health conditions, noting how biological and social influences, as well as hormonal and structural brain differences, play a role. Women have a higher propensity to develop mood and anxiety disorders, such as depression and bipolar mood disorder and post-traumatic stress disorder. For women seeking to prioritize their mental health, Dr. Antwi-Anyimadu shares three practical strategies: 1. Embark on a journey of self-discovery to understand personal triggers, motivations, and emotions. 2. Engage in regular exercise and self-care, recognizing that you can’t pour from an empty cup. Physical activity releases brain chemicals that reduce anxiety and depression while serving as a physical outlet for frustrations. 3. Seek professional help when needed—mental health treatment is available and essential for healing and maintenance. The conversation also touches on systemic challenges, where people with mental health concerns may be stigmatised by their communities or perhaps their issues are dismissed by their families and not considered socially acceptable, and as a result they don’t receive appropriate treatment and support. Dr. Antwi-Anyimadu reflects on some of the reasons that she chose to pursue psychiatry as a specialisation, highlighting patients’ transformations when they receive the correct treatment. Dr. Antwi-Anyimadu describes some pressures of medical training and raising young children at the same time, and emphasised the importance of her support structures as enablers. She also shares some lived experiences, such as being a young Black female doctor navigating societal stereotypes of what a doctor should look like, recounting how after conducting a full consultation and at the verge of diagnosis the patient asked when the doctor would see them, or on another occasion when a white male colleague entered the consulting room the patient assumed he was the doctor. Dr. Antwi-Anyimadu is extremely passionate about her field and helping people.  She leaves listeners with a powerful reminder, that our value is inherent and cannot be measured by external validation or productivity, “We are valuable simply by virtue of being alive." Join us for this thought-provoking discussion as we explore mental health and societal dynamics. Tune in for more.

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January 15, 2025

Dr. Annette Antwi-Anyimadu – Specialist Psychiatrist – Mind Matters

This week on Womanity – Women in Unity, Dr. Amaleya Goneos-Malka talks to Dr. Annette Antwi-Anyimadu, a specialist psychiatrist in private practice at The Couch in Johannesburg, South Africa. Dr. Antwi-Anyimadu offers ...

Welcome to Womanity Women in Unity, join us for our new year broadcast with a compilation of voices from female leaders in politics, the judiciary and medicine talking about aspects of their journeys. Our first guest in this feature is South Africa’s Minister of Basic Education, Siviwe Gwarube, who shares her passion and vision for transforming education in South Africa, impacting the lives of 13,500,000 learners. Drawing inspiration from her upbringing in a typical South African household, raised by her grandmother, Minister Gwarube reflects on her grandmother’s influence as a trailblazing feminist whose relentless pursuit of quality education shaped her life. Many South Africans straddle multiple worlds, such as living in a village and schooling or working in a city. Our next guest, High Court Judge Jacqueline Henriques demonstrates how law and policy can be used to drive change that supports and protects the rights of women. She highlights some of the recent amendments to domestic violence legislation, such as stricter bails imposed on persons charged with domestic violence offences and harsher now prescribed for offences related to gender-based violence. The Act has expanded its definition of what constitutes domestic violence, encompassing physical abuse, spiritual abuse, economic abuse, controlling behaviour, harassment, intimidation, elder abuse, and related person abuse to name a few. The Act now also requires the community to play an active role in stopping the scourge of domestic violence it is mandatory for the public to report incidences or reasonable suspicions of domestic violence, and also criminalises the failure of a person to report such abuse. Closing today’s programme is orthopaedic spine surgeon Dr Lusanda Bomela (women account for just 5% of all orthopaedic surgeons in South Africa). Dr Bomela shares how her interest in the spine, coupled to the fact that few women take up this area of specialisation motivated her to pursue her studies in this field. One of her hopes is that she sets an example to encourage other women to take up orthopaedics and specifically spine as a specialisation.  Medicine can be a demanding career choice, but this profession does not preclude women from having a family life. Dr Bomela notes how having the right support structure in place enables her to be a spine surgeon, mother, wife, mentor and teacher. She reflects that it is not possible to be everything to everybody all the time but with a team ethos and good communication everything is doable. Dr Bomela is passionate about learning and has a deep desire to share education with others, which is part of her maternal philosophy, she believes that if we have a skill it must be passed on or used to better someone else. We have a responsibility to empower the next generation by imparting what we know to them, both in terms of skills and enlightenment. She tells us how her grandmother used to walk her mother to school 20km away for the sake of education, and years later part of her grandmother’s legacy was establishing a school 500m from her house, so no children in the village had an excuse not to be educated. Happy New Year from Womanity wishing you peace and prosperity in 2025.

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January 1, 2025

2025, New Beginnings: No Limits

Welcome to Womanity Women in Unity, join us for our new year broadcast with a compilation of voices from female leaders in politics, the judiciary and medicine talking about aspects of their journeys. Our first guest ...

This week on Womanity-Women in Unity, Dr. Amaleya Goneos-Malka talks to Dr. Elizabeth Hugo who is a Gynaecologist and Gynaecological Oncologist working in the private sector at Vergelegen Mediclinic in Somerset West. October is breast cancer awareness month and breast cancer is one of the five most invasive cancers affecting women in Africa, the others being melanoma, colorectal, cervix and uterus cancers. The latter two cancers affect women’s reproductive organs, which fall into Dr. Hugo’s area of specialisation. Cervical cancer is preventable and curable. The World Health Organisation has initiated a global strategy to eliminate cervical cancer through human papillomavirus virus (HPV) vaccination of girls by age 15, screening and treatment. For example, Australia has seen success with its HPV vaccination drives among girls and boys to eliminate cervical cancer in the population. Endometrial and ovarian cancers can be hard to detect early, but we discuss some of the early warning symptoms. Additionally, if you have a family history of cancers, you carry a genetic risk, for example the BRCA1 and BRCA2 genes (aka the Angelina Jolie gene) raises the risk of breast and ovarian cancer. However, through genetic testing you can assess your risk factors. Cancer is not just a physical disease, it impacts people psychologically and emotionally too, and Dr Hugo emphasises that is important to understand these elements and treat patients holistically. Encouragingly, the chances of curing cancer are increasing with advances in new treatments. Working in this specialisation is demanding but also rewarding. Dr Hugo shares some of the factors have contributed to her success, such as a strong support network, being determined, wanting to help others, enjoying challenges and putting family before work. She motivates us to dream big and not allow ourselves or others to limit our thinking about what is possible. Tune in for more…

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October 25, 2024

Female Cancer Awareness with Dr Elizabeth Hugo – Think Limitless

This week on Womanity-Women in Unity, Dr. Amaleya Goneos-Malka talks to Dr. Elizabeth Hugo who is a Gynaecologist and Gynaecological Oncologist working in the private sector at Vergelegen Mediclinic in Somerset West. ...

This week on Womanity-Women in Unity, Dr. Amaleya Goneos-Malka talks to Dr Irene Boeddinghaus who specialises in breast disease and serves the private sector at the Vincent Pallotti Hospital. October is breast cancer awareness month and today’s conversation focusses on breast cancer, which is one of the top five cancers affecting women. Statistically, one in every eight women will be diagnosed with breast cancer at some point in her life. However, put another way, this statistic also says that seven out of eight women will not be diagnosed with breast cancer. Dr Boeddinghaus acknowledges there are risk factors that influence cancer, but oftentimes women don’t correctly understand their risk profile and we have a responsibility to educate ourselves about individualised risk and in some situations through lifestyle behaviour can prevent certain types of cancers. Breast cancer is not a one size fits all, there are different kinds of breast cancers, stages and consequently treatments.  Early detection of breast cancer is important and can lead to cure and remission.  Dr Boeddinghaus works with a multidisciplinary team that creates individualised treatment plans for patients that consider the nature of the cancer, its size, its stage as well as the patient’s circumstances. For example, besides treating the tumour for a patient in her twenties the team also assess her fertility options should she decide to have a family post treatment. Treating cancer is a life-long journey for patients that Dr Boeddinghaus and her team walks with them. This job intertwines intellectual practice and human interaction to create optimal outcomes. Although Dr Boeddinghaus has an incredibly busy practice, she acknowledges the importance of self-care and not being completely absorbed in work. She comes from a Karoo farming family and some of her outlets include knitting, crocheting with a conscious of using sustainable yarn. Dr Boeddinghaus’s original plans were to pursue a research track in the UK, and she completed her research doctorate in aspects of treatment of and resistance to some of the hormonal agents in breast cancer. However, her plans changed as she considered the environment that she wished to raise her children in and elected to move back to South Africa. Her story highlights how the choices that women make take consideration of their family’s needs as well as redirecting ambition into other avenues and making things work for you. She notes that you cannot change the circumstances of your life, but you have power over is how you react to those circumstances. She closes the conversation reminding us that we should make something positive about whatever life throws at us and enjoy the ride, it’s not about the destination it’s about the journey.

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October 18, 2024

Breast Cancer Awareness with Dr Irene Boeddinghaus – Positive Perspectives

This week on Womanity-Women in Unity, Dr. Amaleya Goneos-Malka talks to Dr Irene Boeddinghaus who specialises in breast disease and serves the private sector at the Vincent Pallotti Hospital. October is breast cancer ...

This week on Womanity-Women in Unity, Dr. Amaleya Goneos-Malka talks to Dr Latifa Firfiray, who is the heads up anaesthesiology clinical services at Tygerberg Hospital and lectures at Stellenbosch University. Dr Firfiray shares some of her motivations for pursuing her specialisation in anaesthesiology, which requires interacting with a multidisciplinary team. She highlights some of her experiences with sedating patients in theatre and helping manage patients with chronic pain through nerve blocks. One of Dr Firfiray’s areas of interest is the wellness of doctors, especially anaesthetists, who have been shown to experience a high rate of burnout, particularly in the public sector. It is almost ironic that doctors, whose role is to care about other people, sometimes neglect their own self-care. Some of the factors that contribute to burnout include system and personal stressors. The accumulative effects of these stressors, if they are not managed correctly, result in mental health issues, like depression and anxiety. Women tend to be susceptible because they often juggle multiple roles simultaneously. In the workplace some preventative measures include a leadership that is open to listening to people on the ground and creating a supportive environment where people can thrive and feel valued. Dr Firfiray encourages us to think in terms of a sisterhood, that we are not alone in our journeys and we should be able to lean on one another for support and lift each up for the betterment of all our lives. She reminds us that women can have it all, but we don’t necessarily have to do it all ourselves, some things can be outsourced to others. Tune in for more…

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July 19, 2024

Dr Latifa Firfiray – Head of Anaesthesiology – Tygerberg Hospital

This week on Womanity-Women in Unity, Dr. Amaleya Goneos-Malka talks to Dr Latifa Firfiray, who heads up anaesthesiology clinical services at Tygerberg Hospital and lectures at Stellenbosch University. Dr Firfiray sha...

This week on Womanity-Women in Unity, Dr. Amaleya Goneos-Malka talks to KwaZulu Natal’s first female Maxillofacial and Oral Surgeon, Dr. Pranusha Ramlakhan, who works in the public sector at the King Edward VIII Hospital/Victoria Mxenge Hospital, in Durban, South Africa. Women are underrepresented in the Maxillofacial and Oral Surgery specialisation. Dr. Ramlakhan shares her journey and emphasises that gender should not be a barrier to anyone’s dreams. Through hard work, faith, belief in her dreams and family support she achieved her goals. One of the rewarding aspects of her work is having an impact on people’s lives. She recounts a memorable case of removing a tumour from a young girl’s jaw, which had disfigured her appearance and caused her to be socially introverted. After the procedure, when the girl looked in a mirror and saw normal features on her face, she was overcome with emotion, and her sense of self-confidence was restored. In terms of her profession, Dr. Ramlakhan notes the value of mentorship and how this asset was lacking at the beginning of her career. She is actively mentoring upcoming maxillofacial surgeons, providing them with the right guidance and sharing her experiences for them to make informed choices. In closing, Dr. Ramlakhan encourages us to follow in Theodore Roosevelt’s words: “Believe you can, and you’re halfway there”. The journey to success is not always a straight path, but through self-belief, support from loved ones, and drawing on your faith, most challenges can be overcome and make you stronger. Tune in for more…

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July 12, 2024

Dr. Pranusha Ramlakhan – Maxillofacial and Oral Surgeon: Self-belief, Support & Spirituality

This week on Womanity-Women in Unity, Dr. Amaleya Goneos-Malka talks to KwaZulu Natal’s first female Maxillofacial and Oral Surgeon, Dr. Pranusha Ramlakhan, who works in the public sector at the King Edward VIII Hospit...

This week on Womanity-Women in Unity, Dr. Amaleya Goneos-Malka talks to Dr. Nika Vafaei, who is a Maxillofacial and Oral Surgeon in private practice and previously served in the public sector. Dr Vafaei shares the differences between the types of conditions she treats in the private sector compared to her experience in the public sector, noting that cases in the public sector tended to be dominated by pathology (i.e tumours) and trauma as a result of assaults (such as broken jaws and broken noses), whereas wisdom tooth extraction and placing implants were more common in private practice. We discuss the low ratio of maxillofacial surgeons to the general population and the uneven distribution of these specialists, particularly in rural communities. Lack of access to specialists has significant implications on individuals’ wellbeing, often conditions become complicate to treat because patients have delayed seeking help.  Dr Vafaei describes a memorable case where she was able to restore mobility to a young girl’s jaws after 13 years of not being able to open her mouth properly. According to the American College of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons only 8% of oral and maxillofacial surgeons are female; unfortunately this is a global trend. Dr Vafaei highlights some of the challenges of pursuing a specialisation, such as the intensity of working, studying and conducting research simultaneously. The demands during this phase can be difficult for women who have or plan to have children if they don’t have adequate support structures to help them. Dr Vafaei emphasises the benefits of having role models and mentors to provide a lived experience that shows how they attain professional goals and positive behaviours to emulate. In closing, Dr Vafaei encourages us to understand our purpose and what motivates us to do the things we want them to; and to combine these drivers into our vocations to lead fulfilling lives.   Tune in for more…

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June 22, 2024

Dr. Nika Vafaei – Maxillofacial and Oral Surgeon: Patience, Purpose and People

This week on Womanity-Women in Unity, Dr. Amaleya Goneos-Malka talks to Dr. Nika Vafaei, who is a Maxillofacial and Oral Surgeon in private practice and previously served in the public sector. Dr Vafaei shares the differ...

This week on Womanity-Women in Unity, Dr. Amaleya Goneos-Malka talks to Dr. Bethany Foster, who is a Professor of Paediatrics, Chair of the Department of Paediatrics at McGill University and Paediatrician-in-Chief at the McGill University Health Centre. She also serves as acting Division Director of Paediatric Nephrology. Additionally, she is Chair of The Transplantation Society’s Women in Transplantation Initiative. She shares some of the factors that contributed to choosing paediatrics and nephrology, such as how kidney disease affects the person as a whole. Her research interests extend to studying immunosuppressive medication adherence, graft outcomes in adolescent and young adult kidney transplant recipients, who tend to be at particularly high risk of graft loss. Additionally, her research addresses recipient and donor sex difference in graft outcomes. She shares that male tissues have a specific protein that is not present on female tissues, which may trigger an immune response against the graft. Prof. Foster is chair of The Transplantation Society’s Women in Transplantation Initiative (WIT), which aims “to advance and inspire women transplant professionals and champion issues of sex and gender in transplantation”. She notes that men still outcome women in transplant medicine and views WIT as an initiative to encourage more women to pursue the field. We discuss the value of mentorship and sponsorship to support women, and emphasis that women need to step up and put themselves forward for leadership roles, thus becoming role models for the women coming up behind them. In closing Prof. Foster encourages women to believe themselves, be open to constructive feedback, and continue to improve.  In your career, as you develop into a self-assured individual, people should accept you as you are, and if you demand it and give them no choice they might just follow your lead. Tune in for more

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June 13, 2024

Professor Bethany Foster – Paediatrician-in-Chief at the McGill University – Reflect Intent

This week on Womanity-Women in Unity, Dr. Amaleya Goneos-Malka talks to Dr. Bethany Foster, who is a Professor of Paediatrics, Chair of the Department of Paediatrics at McGill University and Paediatrician-in-Chief at the...

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