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Principal Investigators


Team Members


Project Period


  • 01/01/2022 – 31/12/2026

South African higher education institutions as drivers of change for health and wellbeing


This project seeks to address the twin challenges of developing capacity for training and research in pharmaceutical public health and doctoral education, and contributing to the goal of strengthening health and pharmaceutical systems capable of sustainably addressing key threats to health.

Project Summary

In this programme SOPH (UWC) seeks to address the challenges of developing its own and partner’s capacity as drivers of change for health and wellbeing (SDG 3,4). We want to contribute to the following long-term changes of improved health and wellbeing of vulnerable communities in South Africa and beyond (SDG 3): strengthened health and pharmaceutical systems capable of sustainably addressing key threats to health (SDG 3), and improved research-policy linkage in terms of development and implementation of context appropriate and evidence-based policies and strategies for health systems strengthening including pharmaceutical system (SDG 3,4).

In the medium term the program aims to contribute to the following changes:

  • Enabling South-African Higher Education Institutions to be drivers of change for health and wellbeing (SDG 3,4),
  • Improved individual, institutional and network capacity (for training, research, policy and stewardship, in Pharmaceutical Public Health, and doctoral education in South Africa and beyond (SDG3,4).

The synergistic project results/outputs that will contribute to the above changes encompass education, research, getting research into policy and practice (GRIPP), online/digital platform development , and consolidating  alignment.

The overall programme is informed by principles of context-sensitivity, south-south collaboration, and co-production of research and knowledge. The south-south and north-south collaborations will enable lesson learning across countries and jurisdictions, and build evidence on individual country experiences in the continent.

Funders

  1. Institute of Tropical Medicine
  2. Directorate-General for Development Cooperation and Humanitarian Aid
Images

 

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The PhD induction series took place from 4 February to 9 March 2026, drawing participation from 19 pre-doctoral and newly registered doctoral fellows. The series consisted of six two-hour thematic sessions facilitated by the SOPH PhD programme support team.

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The PhD induction series took place from 4 February to 9 March 2026, drawing participation from 19 pre-doctoral and newly registered doctoral fellows. The series consisted of six two-hour thematic sessions facilitated by the SOPH PhD programme support team.

The UWC School of Public Health (SOPH) held its annual PhD writing retreat in September 2025, welcoming 21 doctoral candidates.

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We’re proud to celebrate Tinashe Zigomo, a PhD student at the UWC School of Public Health, whose proposal on “Barriers and solutions to accessing essential breast cancer medicines in low-resource settings” received a positive review from the Institute of Tropical Medicine (ITM), Antwerp, Belgium as part of their PhD Light Review process.

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We’re proud to celebrate Tinashe Zigomo, a PhD student at the UWC School of Public Health, whose proposal on “Barriers and solutions to accessing essential breast cancer medicines in low-resource settings” received a positive review from the Institute of Tropical Medicine (ITM), Antwerp, Belgium as part of their PhD Light Review process.

The School of Public Health attended the 68th Annual General Meeting and 37th Annual Conference of the South African Association of Hospital and Institutional Pharmacists (SAAHIP). Represented by Prof Renier Coetzee and Dr Hazel Bradley, the School show cased their contributions to public health pharmacy and transformative healthcare practices.

68th Annual General Meeting and 37th Annual Conference of the South African Association of Hospital and Institutional Pharmacists (SAAHIP).

The School of Public Health attended the 68th Annual General Meeting and 37th Annual Conference of the South African Association of Hospital and Institutional Pharmacists (SAAHIP). Represented by Prof Renier Coetzee and Dr Hazel Bradley, the School show cased their contributions to public health pharmacy and transformative healthcare practices.

On the 14th of April 2025, the University of the Western Cape’s School of Public Health (SOPH) celebrated a remarkable milestone: the graduation of 52 students who have dedicated their academic journey to advancing public health and equity. Among them were two PhD graduates, 25 Master of Public Health graduates, and 25 Postgraduate Diploma graduates. This event marked not only the culmination of years of rigorous study but also the beginning of their impactful contributions to healthier, more just societies.

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On the 14th of April 2025, the University of the Western Cape’s School of Public Health (SOPH) celebrated a remarkable milestone: the graduation of 52 students who have dedicated their academic journey to advancing public health and equity. Among them were two PhD graduates, 25 Master of Public Health graduates, and 25 Postgraduate Diploma graduates. This event marked not only the culmination of years of rigorous study but also the beginning of their impactful contributions to healthier, more just societies.

This is an exciting opportunity to contribute to the local conversations on Pharmaceutical Public Health

SAAHIP conference

This is an exciting opportunity to contribute to the local conversations on Pharmaceutical Public Health

18th Annual Public Health Conference: 6 – 9 APRIL 2025 - 
Partnerships for Public Health: Sculpting a Healthier Future Together

SOPH, UWC at PHASA 2025

18th Annual Public Health Conference: 6 – 9 APRIL 2025 –
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