Siyanda Alex Ngema, a PhD candidate student registered at TUT for a Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) in Sciences (Nursing), represented the University at the World Congress of Nephrology (WCN) - a scientific, educational and networking meeting of the International Society of Nephrology.
The WCN featured a four-day international symposium, presentations, training programmes and courses, which offered the latest science and state-of-the-art education in the nephrology sector. The event was held in Argentina, Buenos Aires Convention Centre (CEC) from 13 to 16 April.
Siyanda, a Lecturer at the Sefako Makgatho Healthcare Sciences University, said he is ardent on preventing and managing infectious and non-infectious diseases, including hypertension and diabetes mellitus. “The growing prevalence of kidney diseases affecting nearly 850 million people globally has sparked this interest,” he said.
He gave two poster presentations titled Hand Hygiene Compliance in the Dialysis Setting: A Systematic Review and "I'm surprised that we are not getting more infections, it's a miracle" Dialysis Practitioners' Practices In the City of Tshwane. Both abstracts have since been published in the Open Access Journal, Kidney International Reports and Elsevier. They are also available on Google Scholar.
Siyanda Alex Ngema
According to Siyanda, the acceptance of his abstracts came at the right time because they gave him an opportunity to share the synopsis of his Master's degree in Nursing Science. He obtained the qualification cum laude at TUT under the supervision of Prof Tendani Ramukumba and Dr Thabiso Bale.
In addition to working on his Doctorate, Siyanda serves as a member of the Tshwane District Health Services Committee, where he is part of a massive community health response project in the Limpopo Province.
“I have previously attended a number of local and national conferences and the more I attend, the more I enjoy them and learn. This was my first international congress attendance and my first time leaving the country. I thoroughly enjoyed participating in an event of such a high calibre. My presentation was received positively with many delegates from various countries relating to my research findings and asking for future collaborations. I found the discussions associated with Kidney Health highly engaging and interesting,” he added.
“Many South Africans lose their lives due to the unavailability of organs that could save them, including kidneys. I would like to encourage everyone to volunteer to donate their organs and tissue while still alive. This can be life-changing for many people.”
“Attending the congress provided psychological space to reflect on the situation in South Africa related to kidney health. Listening to other professionals, I realised that the challenges we face in South Africa are not unique to us but are equally prevalent in other countries,” he continued.
“I genuinely believe that such conferences are great platforms for young leaders from all walks of life to address global problems and to share ideas and initiatives as well as learn about best practices to achieve the global Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) from the nephrology perspective,” concluded Siyanda.
