University of Pretoria alumna, Dr Coceka Mfundisi, was the first woman to graduate with a Master of Medicine in Neurosurgery degree from the University of Pretoria. She currently practices as a specialist neurosurgeon at Life Brenthurst and the Busamed Modderfontein Private Orthopaedic and Oncology Hospital. She has a specific interest in paediatric neurosurgery, neurotrauma, neuro-oncology and spinal surgery.

Dr Mfundisi obtained an MMed degree from the University of Pretoria in 2015 after completing her MBChB at the University of Cape Town in 2006. She competed her training as a specialist neurosurgeon with the Colleges of Medicine of South Africa and was admitted as a Fellow of the College of Neurosurgeons of South Africa in 2014. This made her only the second black woman to be admitted to this institution.

She has a number of other achievements. This includes serving on the Executive Committee of the Society of Neurosurgeons in South Africa; serving as a member of the Road Accident Fund (RAF)’s Appeal Tribunal at the Health Professions Council of South Africa (HPCSA); being a member of the Golden Lions Rugby Club Medical Committee; and serving as a test match neurosurgeon in the Springbok vs France match in 2017. 

In a recent interview, Dr Mfundisi explained that she has had a great interest in neurology, psychiatry and neurosurgery since leaving medical school. She was fascinated by neuroscience. She was not only challenged by the topic, but also by how to translate knowledge of Western medicine into an African context.
 
She attributes her achievement to her perseverance: “I became the first woman of any race to qualify because I basically just stuck my head into it,” she says. While she considers her job to be much like any other, she says that she feels quite privileged to be able to care for human beings and to be trusted by them to make them feel better. She admits, though, that it requires a high level of concentration, particularly when one is in theatre. 

She had strong role models, who taught her to be fearless. Growing up in a village, raised by a widowed mother, she says that her grandmother instilled a sense of discipline and an attitude of resilience in her when pursuing a goal. “I was fortunate to grow up in a home where my talents and intellectual abilities were acknowledged and nurtured.” 

Dr Mfundisi recently featured in a LeadUP podcast, presented fortnightly by the University of Pretoria’s Alumni Relations Office. In this episode, she spoke about the challenges she encountered on her journey, and keeping her eye on the goal. She encourages young African women to follow their dream