​In the second event of the Roads to Research series, three alumni from the Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences (FMHS) shared their journeys as researchers and rehabilitation healthcare professionals with students and faculty members.

The 'Roads to Research: Allied Health Highway' event took place in February and was facilitated by the Tygerberg Undergraduate Research Society, also known as the Society for Undergraduate Research promoting Growth and Excellence (SURGE). The hosts of this hybrid event were MBChB students Sangeun Lee and Motheo Mmotong from SURGE, and Dr Debbie Marais, Head of the Undergraduate Research Office at the Research Development and Support Division of the FMHS.

The event highlighted opportunities in research for students in occupational therapy and speech-language and hearing therapy.

First steps to research

Monique de Witt, an occupational therapist specialising in mental health and well-being, gave students some general tips on starting their research journeys. She said the first steps will largely depend on one's programme, and a good departure point would be to look at the application requirements of a specific programme and connect with the respective supervisor.

She advised prospective researchers to check if their research needs ethical clearance or not. “You might need an ethics protocol before you can start your data collection phase, but if you do a scoping review or a systematic review it might not be necessary," she added.

De Witt is currently in the ethical protocol phase of her own PhD. After working in the United States for over a decade, she is now back at Stellenbosch University (SU) as a clinical supervisor and part-time lecturer.

Using research to drive change

With a passion for driving change at grass roots level, Valenzia Mackenzie inspired students to use their research findings to catalyse advancements in the healthcare sector of South Africa.

“I think for anyone stepping into the research space, it's all about improving service delivery…because at the end of the day you discover what's working and what's not and you take it back into practice," she reiterated.

Mackenzie graduated from SU with a Master's in Speech- and Language and Hearing Therapy and is currently pursuing her PhD. With her strong calling towards community-based speech therapy, Mackenzie is also coordinating therapeutic services for the Western Cape Education Department in the Overberg district.

Dreaming of broader horizons 

Itumeleng Tsatsi, an occupational therapist and researcher in psychiatry and mental health, shared some honest insights from her own eye-opening research experience.

While working at a rural psychiatric hospital in Limpopo, Tsatsi conducted research into how mental health patients could be reintegrated into society from a halfway house. She assumed her study would confirm what she already knew, but the results proved the contrary. These findings gave her deeper insights into the needs of mental health patients as well as the value of substantiating theories with data.   

“Instead of just making assumptions about a situation or setting, research really broadens your horizons and exposes you to things you would have never even considered had you just stayed where you were," she explained.

Tsatsi currently lectures at the University of the Free State. Her cutting edge work in occupational therapy has earned her a spot on News24's 100 Young Mandelas of the Future list in 2019 and on the Mail & Guardian's 200 Young South Africans list in 2018.

For updates on the Roads to Research series and future events, keep an eye on SURGE's

Instagram and Facebook pages. For research guidance and opportunities, check out the Undergraduate Research Office's website.

Caption: Itumeleng Tsatsi, Monique de Witt en Valenzia Mackenzie​.