Annual Rural Health Conference
The Rural Health Conference is a vibrant event bringing together doctors, therapists, nurses, clinical associates, health students and NGOs. Always in a rural location! Regular RHC goers love to meet up and share ideas and friendship with colleagues from around South Africa and Africa. New RHC goers are usually "blown away" by the energy and interest generated at the conference.
Find out more!
Read about our Key Note Speakers below
RHC2025 Kate Sherry. Kate is an occupational therapist working mainly in rural and remote communities, with a focus on new service development and system strengthening. She has worked in various parts of South Africa, Madagascar, Uganda, Cameroon, Kenya and the South Atlantic, and recently joined Libumba Inclusion Initiative in Eswatini. Kate was founding chair of RuReSA and continues on exco. She has postgraduate degrees in public health and a preference for far- flung jobs involving modest resources, unpredictable transport and good birding.
RHC2024 Octavia Tembe. Octavia is Speech-language Therapist with a special interest in Early Childhood Intervention (ECI). Her early career was based at 2 hospitals in rural KwaZulu-Natal. Through her engagement with children with developmental neurological conditions, a passion for early childhood intervention was ignited and routed her into obtaining a Masters in early childhood intervention (MSc: ECI) from the University of Pretoria (2021). Currently, she works as a Chief Speech and Language therapist for the department of Education-Nkangala district: LSPID programme, focusing on educational therapeutic interventions for learners with severe to profound intellectual disabilities. Octavia is also involved in clinical supervision and support of M: SLP students from the University of Ghana.
RHC2023 Gift Tshaka Gift Tshaka is from a small town called Nqamakwe in Kotana administrative area. He matriculated from St johns in 1993 where he was active in sport and choral music. He did his junior degree in Bsc Occupational Therapy with the University of the Western Cape and graduated in 1996. He furthered his studies in 2001 with the same university doing Masters in Public Health which he obtained in 2004 at the same time with his Diploma in labour Law and the latter was obtained from Institute of Global Business Solution in EL. In 2021 he enrolled with the National school of Government and obtained the following certificates; Nyukela Public Service SMS pre- entry programme, Project Khaedu: Field Assignment and in Methods and Perspectives..
RHC2022 Gillian Saloojee Dr. Gillian Saloojee is a paediatric physiotherapist with a special interest in working with children and young adults with cerebral palsy (CP) and their families living in rural resource-constrained settings. Promoting access to quality intervention and excellent services for all children and young adults with CP, irrespective of where they live, has been the driving force behind her work. She is the Founder and former Executive Director of Malamulele Onward, the current Chairperson of the Southern African Academy of Childhood Disability and an honorary senior lecturer in the Physiotherapy Department at the University of the Witwatersrand.
RHC2024 Octavia Tembe. Octavia is Speech-language Therapist with a special interest in Early Childhood Intervention (ECI). Her early career was based at 2 hospitals in rural KwaZulu-Natal. Through her engagement with children with developmental neurological conditions, a passion for early childhood intervention was ignited and routed her into obtaining a Masters in early childhood intervention (MSc: ECI) from the University of Pretoria (2021). Currently, she works as a Chief Speech and Language therapist for the department of Education-Nkangala district: LSPID programme, focusing on educational therapeutic interventions for learners with severe to profound intellectual disabilities. Octavia is also involved in clinical supervision and support of M: SLP students from the University of Ghana.
RHC2023 Gift Tshaka Gift Tshaka is from a small town called Nqamakwe in Kotana administrative area. He matriculated from St johns in 1993 where he was active in sport and choral music. He did his junior degree in Bsc Occupational Therapy with the University of the Western Cape and graduated in 1996. He furthered his studies in 2001 with the same university doing Masters in Public Health which he obtained in 2004 at the same time with his Diploma in labour Law and the latter was obtained from Institute of Global Business Solution in EL. In 2021 he enrolled with the National school of Government and obtained the following certificates; Nyukela Public Service SMS pre- entry programme, Project Khaedu: Field Assignment and in Methods and Perspectives..
RHC2022 Gillian Saloojee Dr. Gillian Saloojee is a paediatric physiotherapist with a special interest in working with children and young adults with cerebral palsy (CP) and their families living in rural resource-constrained settings. Promoting access to quality intervention and excellent services for all children and young adults with CP, irrespective of where they live, has been the driving force behind her work. She is the Founder and former Executive Director of Malamulele Onward, the current Chairperson of the Southern African Academy of Childhood Disability and an honorary senior lecturer in the Physiotherapy Department at the University of the Witwatersrand.
RHC2018 Maryke Bezuidenhout is a physiotherapist, Head of Rehab at Manguzi Hospital KZN, and current Chair of RuReSA. She received a standing ovation for her keynote speech on Rural Proofing the Future Generation of Professionals. Never one to shy away from issues and controversy she highlighted that without changing the way we educate health students we will not create the type of clinicians we need working rural - people that have been exposed to the intersectoral problem solving needed in rural and who value multidisciplinary team work .
RHC2017 Prof Shakile Dada:
Participation: Is it enough to be present?
Shakila Dada is
a speech-language pathologist and has many years’ experience in
training and implementing Augmentative and Alternative Communication
(AAC) in the South African context as well as postgraduate training in
AAC implementation. Her research and publications concern
augmentative and alternative communication interventions with a
particular focus on the role of graphic symbols in language learning and
extending participation of persons with disabilities. Her broader focus
lies with ensuring participation of persons who use AAC, and their
families when providing interventions.
RHC2016 Prof Steve Reid:
Health, Ability, Resilience and Well-being in rural areas: a different perspective on caring
Steve Reid is a Family Physician with
extensive experience in rural clinical practice, education and research.
He started a vocational training programme for rural doctors in Durban,
and was a founder member of the Rural Doctors Association of SA. At the
University of KwaZulu-Natal he started the Centre for Rural Health and
In 2010 he took up the post of Glaxo-Wellcome Chair of Primary Health
Care at the University of Cape Town, where he has led teaching and
research in primary health care, distributed learning, human resources
for health, and medical humanities.
Steve said he is honoured to have have a "promotion to rehab"!
RHC 2015 Prof Claire Penn:
Ethical issues for multidisciplinary health teams : Ensuring humane health care
Claire has a deep interest in rural Africa,
and is an A-rated speech and language pathologist and one of the world
leaders in the field of linguistics, sign language, child language,
aphasia and head injury. Her interest in the complexities of human
communication has seen her produce ground-breaking research.
In Claire's career in speech pathology she has worked in
the Department of Speech Pathology and Audiology
at Wits, was a British
Council scholar at New Addenbrookes Hospital, England; a visiting
research fellow in the Department of Linguistics at the University of
Macquarie in Sydney;
senior research specialist a
t the Human Sciences Research Council; and then a consultant to various international institutions.
Jean is a development-orientated Physiotherapist with specialization in at the assessment and management of children with Cerebral Palsy. Her interests have grown beyond clinical work into social justice and human rights, public health and development. She has overseen the operationalisation of the pilot of the Programme in Orange Farm. As part of this Afrika Tikkun Empowerment Programme: Children with Disabilities and Their Families and annual event called the Child Protection + Disability Dialogue, to promote the equitable extension of child protection and justice to children with disabilities. See Jean's keynote address on YouTube - there are 2 speakers and Jean is 1 hour in.