University of Pretoria

Pretoria, South Africa

Coordinating institution

Coordinator: Prof E.N. L'Abbé

The University of Pretoria (UP) remains one of the largest contact universities in South Africa and has since grown to become the number one ranked university in South Africa for research outputs. UP is a dynamic university with staff and students from a wide range of backgrounds across South Africa and globally.

UP will act as the coordinating institution for the Dirisana+ project from 2021 - 2024. With this collaborative research project, we will address issues of staff development in health professions education, novel teaching modalities, online formative and summative assessments and educational resources, perceptions and attitudes towards interprofessional education, ways to align our curricula with business, academic literacy, sociocultural inclusivity, and develop business ideas for third stream income. Approaches to addressing these various themes are transdisciplinary and involve but are not necessarily limited to the following department and research units: audiology and speech-language pathology and audiology, anatomy, clinical public health in medicine, medicine, nursing, pharmacology, and academic literacy.

Sefako Makgatho Health Sciences University

Ga-Rankua, South Africa

Partner institution

Project manager: Prof A.C. Oettlé

Sefako Makgatho Health Sciences University (SMU) is the only university in South Africa with an exclusive focus on health sciences education thereby bearing a special responsibility towards the country to produce qualified health personnel with competencies to deliver meaningful experiences of health care to South Africans.

Derived from the Tswana translation the Dirisana plus project initiated by SMU, is a call to “help each other” and therefore represents for SMU an opportunity to not only collaborate in training and in research but also uphold the spirit of community service through people capacitation. Within the project SMU will play an integral role in establishing and capacitating communities of practice in the fields of teaching and training in health professions education by fostering participation in national and international collaborative workshops, conferences and fellowships. Participation in this project is envisaged to translate to enhanced experiences of learning that should contribute to greater student throughput rates and the intentional transformation of curricula to develop employable and sought after graduates.

University of the Witwatersrand

Johannesburg, South Africa

Partner institution

Project manager: Dr L. Crous

University of the Witwatersrand (WITS) is one of the top universities in South Africa and is known for its commitment to academic and research excellence. WITS was ranked in the top 1% of universities in the world.

In the Dirisana+ project, WITS in involved in various research activities focusing on standardizing the curriculum in various health modules, assisting in the development and quality assurance of assessment questions banks and playing an active role in gaining insight on perceptions and attitudes towards interprofessional education. The purchasing of a 3D printer and scanner through the Dirisana+ project will also assist WITS in developing teaching materials and new research avenues.

University of Namibia

Windhoek, Namibia

Partner institution

Project manager: Dr A. du Plessis

The University of Namibia (UNAM) is the largest institution of higher education in the country and caters for a diverse student population from 41 countries. The Faculty of Health Science provides a learning environment conducive to the pursuit of professional competence by health professionals, while providing quality services to the community. The Faculty of Health Sciences, encompass the schools of Medicine, Pharmacy, Allied Health and Dentistry and is mandated to resolve the shortage of medical professionals in Namibia.

In the Dirisana+ project, UNAM will be involved in research activities and the development of online teaching and assessment resources. The Faculty will collaborate to create an inter-institutional question bank, compatible with most learning management systems. In addition, the department of anatomy will establish a plastination and 3D printing facility to create a model library. Through mobilities and programmes offered through the grant, we hope to advance our educational practice and foster international visibility.

Welwitchia Health Training Centre

Windhoek, Namibia

Partner institution

Project manager: Prof S.N. Iipinge

Welwitchia Health Training Centre (WHTC) is a Private Higher Education Institution in Namibia with a special focus on Health, Social and Management Sciences. WHTC has keen interest in bridging the professional gap and empowering previously disadvantaged communities, WHTC continues to complement the Government efforts in addressing skills shortage, WHTC has both local and international collaborations in students and staff mobility that extends to Finland, USA, South Africa, India, and Zimbabwe among others.

As part of the Dirisana+ consortium, WHTC’s main objective is offering the Nursing Programmes online to increase access to nursing education, demonstration of standardized clinical procedures through videos and to enhance standard setting and sustainable quality of education. Collaboration with UNAM in 3D Printing and purchasing a birthing simulator will aid in improving midwifery knowledge and skills.  Partnering with renowned Universities under the Dirisana+ consortium will further facilitate the enhancement of research, IT skills and increased exposure of WHTC’s staff to various education models applied by partnering Universities.