FPD News

Mental health among South African youngsters is a serious concern. As part of a wider project to improve mental health policy and services in South Africa generally, the Foundation for Professional Development (FPD) has launched an innovative attempt to reach youth where they are at – playing games on their phones.

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Life gets the better of us from time to time. In the fast-moving, dynamic world that we live in today, it is easy to get lost in all the chaos and negative media. It is therefore important to work at changing perspective and strive to adopt a positive mindset. We need positivity to deal with life’s changes, and to move forward in life. Below are a couple of tips you can start implementing today:

The first cases of HIV were diagnosed in 1981 — 41 years later the HIV epidemic continues to haunt South African communities.

In March 2021 the Foundation for Professional Development (FPD) had received funding from the Foundation for a Smoke-Free World (FSFW) for a study to investigate the interaction between smoking and Covid-19 in South Africa.

We have a problem: The regular snap surveys we do amongst our colleagues shows that common mental health problems are prevalent amongst FPD employees. We are not alone; the whole world is experiencing a mental health pandemic. The Coronavirus pandemic has had a massive detrimental impact on mental health. Across the world increases in anxiety, depression, PTSD, substance use, and suicide have been reported.

From the beginning of March 2016, registered medical students across South Africa will be eligible to receive free management training thanks to a partnership between the Foundation for Professional Development (FPD), Medical Practice Consulting (MPC), and Mr Gabriel Nel, a medical student, from the University of Pretoria. FPD is subsidiary of the South African Medical Association (SAMA).

When I was doing my undergraduate degree, I double majored in Biology and Race Relations because I always had an interest in social justice but I loved the objective approach that science provided. I studied molecular biology after completing undergraduate degree because the adviser told me that it was easier to go from science into social science but impossible to go from social science back into the lab, therefore I studied molecular biology.

ave you ever wondered how some organisations (or people) manage to have one amazing success after another? Well, the secret is having the creative mind-set, which is a growth mind-set orientated towards creating values.

Do you walk your talk? Say what you mean and mean what you say? Or does your language take you down the roads you’re not willing to follow? Taking a closer look at how your words and deeds connect can help you see where you really stand. These were the sentiments that Maria Ncube covered herself with when she joined FPD in 2014.

Foundation for Professional Development (FPD) in partnership with Medical Women Association of South Africa (MWASA) held a breast cancer staff awareness talk at the FPD head office to encourage women to be more aware about the existence of breast cancer.

FPD has formulated guidelines which ensure that we properly manage and engage with all our Community Based Counselling and Testing (CBCT) teams regularly. Here is an outline of the guidelines;

On 31st of October 2015, selected FPD staff members participated in a 4x4 training provided by Bonsai Technologies facilitated by Johan Du Plooy at Henopspride Caravan Park in Centurion, Pretoria.

The young MWASA gives an opportunity for the younger members of the profession to meet and discuss issues relevant to their stage in the careers. This group includes Female Medical Students from 5th year of study to internship.

In a bid to improve the quality of health services delivered to communities in Gauteng, the Government, through the Expanded Public Works Programme (EPWP), is currently training 40 young people in pharmacy assistant learnership programme. Upon graduation these young people will be placed at various Government hospitals, clinics and even in private institution such as Clicks Pharmacy and Dischem to assist in the dispensary of medicines to the patients in the Province.

FPD VIP Charter service provides an executive transport service to anybody in need to be transported anywhere in South Africa.

Years ago in many South African remote villages, Yellow pages was the most essential tool used for connecting people to businesses, product and services by providing all the relevant information about them. Today we are living in the digital age where the access of information is made easy due to the excessive use of technology.

On the 17th of July 2015, FPD Capricorn District team participated in an event honoring Mandela day in Polokwane Municipality. The event took place at Lukama Centre for the Handicapped. It was conducted in collaboration with Department of Health, Moletji FM, Builders warehouse, great north transport and SANTA dedicating their time, skills, and money for community empowerment in the area.

Over the past few months there has been an emphasis placed on the integration of the Adherence Clubs and I ACT (Integrated Access to Care and Treatment) projects. This integration focuses on creating a patient – centric model with an emphasis on improved patient retention from the time of HIV diagnosis all the way through to being initiated on treatment and eventually becoming stable on treatment.

Foundation for Professional Development (FPD) in partnership with South African Medical Association (SAMA) hosted a satellite session based on Early Childhood Development at the 7th SA AIDS held at the Durban ICC. This article aims to share the discussions that were shared by the chosen speakers and panellists.

FPD’s Community Based Counselling and Testing (CBCT), a 5 year programme funded by USAID/PEPFAR with FPD as the main recipient, officially launched at the 7th SAAIDS conference in Durban on June 9th 2015.

Every year many South Africans face the reality of living with a mental health condition. During the month of July, healthcare providers, NGOs and the rest of the country are raising awareness to mental illness as this is one of the biggest challenges facing the country.

The main speaker at the event was the deputy minister of Health, Dr. Joe Phahla. Emalahleni was chosen for the Youth month celebrations by virtue of the high prevalence of drugs in the area. The main event was based on substance abuse awareness as well as other health problems. Various organisations offered support and FPD provided technical support in the form of data capturing and monitoring & evaluation. Door-to-door/home visit were also done in the community to establish the impact of substance abuse. It was revealed that the elderly are worried about substance abuse and addicts steal from them. A soccer match was also organised.

Thuthuzela Care Centres are one-stop facilities that have been introduced as a critical part of South Africa’s anti-rape strategy, aiming to reduce secondary trauma for the victim, to improve conviction rates and to reduce the cycle time for finalising cases. Patients don't have to move from one place to another to get help; they are offered the necessary services at one place with all the required resources.

In the month of April, significant developments have been achieved within I ACT, specifically regarding the integration/collaboration of TA’s community projects, namely CBCT, I ACT and Adherence Clubs. This integration aims to create a comprehensive care and support package that is patient-centric and aims to improve adherence & retention in care from point of diagnosis and pre-initiation on ART, but also through initiation on ART and extending further to 18+ months stable on ART.

FPD is proud to announce that they have trained over 300 000 students since their establishement in 1997. This milestone was reached in May 2015 on the Department of Planning, Monitoring and Evaluation short course customised for the Office of the Premier based in Pretoria, Gauteng. Ms M E Mbambo attended this course as our 300 000th student. FPD’s approach with all its programmes is to combine excellent theory and personal experience. Students are able to contextualise key concepts and apply these in the workplace. FPD ensures quality of faciliting is always of the highest standard as excellence is the underlying value in all learning and teaching programmes at FPD.

The FPD award for excellence in community engagement is awarded annually to the employee who has made the most significant contribution towards FPD’s community engagement. The 2014 prize was awarded to Sharon Ngomane, Mgozi shares her story.

During January to March 2015, FPD mobile lab team in Nkangala district trained 241 people in programmes that they offer. 65 Nurses and Admin Clerks received Basic Computer training, 54 Operational Managers were trained in advanced computer training and 50 Data Captures and Information officers received Tier.net training. The mobile lab team also trained 13 data captures and Information Officers on data reviews and 32 Operational Managers, Supervisors and Programme Managers on goal setting.

On 24 March 2015, Community Based Counselling and Testing (CBCT) mobile teams in Tshwane District joined the international community in commemorating World Tuberculosis Day themed “Gear Up to End TB” by World Health Organisation (WHO).

Ubuntu Community Development is an NGO that was formed to provide care, knowledge and support to the Bayview community members struck by poverty and suffering as a result of drug trafficking and substance abuse which also contribute to Gender Based Violence (GBV). The NGO has a team of volunteers who have experience in GBV and related offences. Its core mission is to reduce GBV, to get people to speak about their experiences on GBV and to help the community to identify and cope with challenges of life.

“There has been a culture of silence on Gender Based Violence at all levels, from the policymakers to the victims themselves –this must change.” – Diarietou Gaye.

The Foundation for Professional Development (FPD) Gender Based Violence management course proved to be a success in the community of Bayview, Durban. The Ubuntu community workers were impressed with the amount of information that became available to help them to do their jobs better.

Minister of Health, Dr Aaron Motsoaledi addressed the concerns raised during the TB Conference in his presentation. He emphasised the government’s plans and strategies to stop the spreading of TB, to increase the identification and treatment of TB patients.

The National Department of Health introduced latest developments of the new South Africa TB management guidelines.

Dr Lindiwe Mvusi, Director in the TB Control and Management Cluster within the National Department of Health discussed the new developments of the South Africa TB management guidelines. The purpose of these guidelines is to serve as a guide for health practitioners in making appropriate decisions when managing TB patients.

FPD in partnership with the National Centre for Knowledge on Men’s Violence against Women (NCK) and Uppsala University Hospital in Sweden have completed the 3 year Gender Based Violence Capacity Development Project through a generous grant from the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency. SIDA donated six million Swedish Kronor (SEK 6.000.000) towards the success of the project.