As part of its 60th-anniversary celebrations, the Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences is introducing 60 future healthcare professionals who are currently in their first year. Meet Cecile de Wet.

First-year B Occupational Therapy student Cecile de Wet wants to bring hope to seemingly hopeless situations. “By becoming an occupational therapist (OT), I’ll be able to help people to see and reach the light at the end of their tunnel,” she says about the career path she has chosen to embark on.

De Wet is eager to learn all the skills that will enable her to solve problems as an OT. For her, the biggest challenge in the profession is that every patient requires a unique and individualised approach. “There’s no set book of rules you can follow.”

In ten years’ time, De Wet sees herself in a position where she can enable people to experience life in abundance. The motto she lives by ties in with this wish for herself and for others: “Love the life you live and live the life you love.”

Drilling down

• What message would you like to give to campus? “Don’t wait for ‘one day’ to make your life count. Make it count now.”
• Favourite food? “Falafel in a pita.”
• Thoughts on social media? “We all love to be connected and entertained, but social media can easily steal away the quality time we have with the people closest to us.”
• What, according to you, is the purpose of life? “To know God and to make Him known.”
• Top time management tip? “Stay focussed.”