Effectual partnership to advance public health knowledge

On 29 August 2025, Unisa, in collaboration with Tshwane District Research Committee and sister universities around the Tshwane District, conducted research training workshops designed to equip healthcare workers in the district with extensive knowledge on public health.

The sister universities, such as the Sefako Makgatho University, University of Pretoria, Tshwane University of Technology (TUT), as well as Unisa, have a commonality of offering public health academic subscriptions. Some of the healthcare workers are also studying towards health sciences qualifications, and they participated in the workshops by posing questions around master’s and doctoral research, among others.

Attendees connecting at the workshops

Unisa staff members, including Marang Tebogo Mamahlodi, lecturer in public health at Unisa’s Department of Health Studies under the College of Human Sciences, provided training on different topics. The topics included qualitative and quantitative research planning, research data management, research data analysis, and the dissemination of research report.

This is an annual initiative, developed to equip healthcare workers with understanding and knowledge of carrying out research in their designated working environment and beyond. Therefore, the initiative empowers the workers with relevant skills to increase research impact within the healthcare sector.

The programme participants, hailing from various primary and secondary healthcare facilities, had a common objective of comprehending what scientific research is and what it take to carry it out in public health institutions.

Led by the Tshwane District Research Committee, also known as the district’s Institution Review Board (IRB), and the said partners will also host the 12th Tshwane Scientific Research Conference on 18 and 19 September 2025, at the Tshwane Leadership and Management Academy (Premos) next to TUT.

The future looks prosperous in public health triage modelling with university-government-industry partnership.

We say, halala to the effective milestone!

* Marang Tebogo Mamahlodi, Lecturer, Department of Health Studies