Ndiviwe Mphothulo

Full circle moment! Dec 2000, I was a 5th year medical student volunteering in the maternity ward at Chris Hani Baragwanath Hospital, where I was BORN! The same hospital that sparked my passion to study medicine. What a blessing it was to give back where my life began 🙌

The end product 🤝

Legae Private Clinic Update: X-ray machine delivered and installation in progress! We know how difficult it has been for our patients to travel long distances just for an X-ray. Soon, that will be history. We are excited to be closer to offering full X-ray services at Legae Private Clinic through JS X-rays. Watch this space.

Let me explain a beautiful custom from my family when we do umbulelo (thanksgiving). On the day of the function, before anything else, we have iBhunga. iBhunga is a briefing session attended by family members ONLY. No community, just family. In iBhunga, you as the person doing the thanksgiving must explain the REASONS for doing it. You must account. You must give a full report of what you are thanking for. In my case, I had to stand before my family and explain my PhD - its objectives, its findings 😂😂. Imagine presenting your PhD twice! Then I had to explain about the private clinic, its purpose and the journey. Only after you have satisfied the family in iBhunga, do you then go to the house and invite the community. It is then the family elders who explain to the community what the thanksgiving is about. You don't explain to the community, your elders do. Family first. Community after. That's how we do umbulelo.

It's always good to be home, Tsomo at the Eastern Cape. My great great great grandfather, Mlondleni ka Hlathi settled here around 1830-1840 having left Lenge, at Ladysmith KwaZulu. His first born son, from his second wife,maGoqolo, was Mpotulo. I carry the name of Mpotulo as my surname… This is where I get my spiritual rejuvenation. This is where I find strength. Being here brings back nostalgia - the journey of my forebears and their activism. Their bravery. Their unwavering commitment to their communities. Their courage to take on any man and any system. Indeed, I am a descendant of great men and women. AmaBhele, ooJola, ooKhoza, ooManci…

A few months ago, I was humbled to be shortlisted for the African Health Excellence Awards in the category of Health Care Leader of the Year. I am truly grateful for the recognition - being shortlisted among Africa's best health leaders is in itself a great honour. I did not announce it at the time. The reason is simple: in the same category was Professor Boitumelo Phakathi (MBCHB, MMED, Fellowship of Surgeons of SA, PhD), a daughter of Taung, North West,who has done exceptional work. Whom I was a mentoring at times. We could not have two Taung-associated doctors dividing the vote. So I took a decision to support her fully and not to mobilise support for myself. Sometimes leadership is about stepping back so that your sister can shine brighter, and so that home can win. Thank you to the African Health Excellence Awards for the shortlist, and congratulations to Prof Phakathi and all fellow nominees for the amazing work you do for Mzansi and Africa.

WELCOME TO THE LEGAE FAMILY, DR DLAMINI! 👶🏽 We are proud to introduce our newest addition to our team of visiting specialists - Dr Dlamini, Paediatrician. At Legae Private Clinic-Taung, our mission has always been simple: bringing specialist care closer to our community. We are so excited that our precious babies, children and parents in Taung and surrounding areas will no longer need to travel far for specialist paediatric care. Dr Dlamini will be serving our little ones with great expertise and much love. I have always known it’s possible to bring specialist care and tertiary health services to a village. I’m glad our specialists from Kimberley are availing themselves to come to Taung village 🙏🏿 #RuralHealthMatters

The apartheid government was very violent against children. The murder of the 5 children in Mthatha by the SA Defence Force (SADF) is shocking, but not unexpected for those of us who experienced the violence of the SA Police (SAP) as activists and youth and student leaders in Soweto. I spent my formative years as a youth and student activist in the early 1990s when I got to high school, through COSAS , the Soweto Youth Congress (SOYCO) and later ANC Youth League in 1991. My first-hand experience of children being abused as 13-15 year olds was when I witnessed them being badly beaten in a student meeting held at the Jabavu Youth Centre. At the end of 1989, at the age of 13, they picked up my friend who had a PAC emblem. They took me and him, drove us around Soweto and made us jump from a moving car. By age 14, they had attacked us as COSAS leaders, rounded us up between Soweto and Park Station, set dogs on us and pepper-sprayed us. By age 15, we were ambushed in a bus by hostel dwellers on our way from Orlando Stadium in 1992. Old men chased us with spears and shot at us. It is this violence against children perpetrated by the government from the late 1980s up to 1993 that is not spoken about enough.