KwaZulu-Natal region

Dr Pavitra Pillay  

Institution: DUT

Prof Pavitra Pillay is an Associate Professor and Deputy Dean in the Faculty of Health Sciences at the Durban University of Technology. She serves on the SAAHE Executive Committee and holds dual leadership roles as Chair of the Awards Subcommittee and Chapter Chair for KwaZulu-Natal (KZN).

In her SAAHE leadership roles, she drives strategic initiatives to recognise excellence in health professions education through transparent and rigorous national award processes, while fostering regional capacity development, collaboration, and scholarly engagement. Her work advances SAAHE’s mission of promoting innovation, inclusivity, and socially responsive education.

Her research interests span health professions education, interprofessional learning, maternal and adolescent health, sexual and reproductive health, and infectious diseases, including female genital schistosomiasis. She is committed to advancing scholarship that informs equitable and contextually responsive healthcare education and practice.

Prof Pillay is a strong advocate for student success and welfare, with a particular focus on improving clinical training environments, student support systems, and graduate employability through engagement with all key stakeholders. Her work is underpinned by a sustained commitment to mentorship, transformation, and strengthening responsive and sustainable healthcare education systems in South Africa.

ORCID:  0000-0001-9414-3384

Dr Elizabeth Ojewole

Institution: UKZN

Elizabeth Ojewole is a faculty member of the Discipline of Pharmaceutical Sciences, School/College of Health Sciences, University of KwaZulu-Natal (UKZN), South Africa. She obtained Bachelor of Pharmacy degree from Obafemi Awolowo University, Ife Nigeria, Master of Science degree in Clinical Pharmacy, University of Strathclyde, Glasgow, United Kingdom, and a PhD from UKZN, South Africa. Elizabeth has worked at various hospitals and Universities. She has taught in the BPharm programme and coordinated postgraduate programmes in the Faculty of Health Sciences at the then University of Durban-Westville, KZN, South Africa. She has practised pharmacy at Prince Mshiyeni Memorial Hospital, Durban, and at Life Healthcare Hospital before she joined Pharmaceutical Sciences teaching faculty at UKZN. She is passionate about teaching and research which are the core areas in her current occupation at UKZN. Elizabeth received ODASS/Commonwealth Scholarship from United Kingdom’s Association of Commonwealth Universities towards her MSc Clinical Pharmacy degree. She received competitive staff research grants from UKZN towards the completion of her PhD, as well as financial supports from research funders including Aspen Pharmacare of South Africa, National Research Foundation (NRF) and Medical Research Council (MRC) as supported by her PhD research supervisor.   She won first prize in Pharmaceutics Category at Academy of Pharmaceutical Sciences of South Africa for her research presentation. She is a member of the Golden Key International Honour Society. Elizabeth teaches in BPharm curriculum, supervises BPharm (Hons), Masters students, and PhD students. She is registered as a Pharmacist with the South African Pharmacy Council (SAPC). She is a registered member of professional associations including South African Association of Hospital and Institutional Pharmacists (SAAHIP), the Pharmaceutical Society of South Africa (PSSA), South African Society of Clinical Pharmacists (SASOCP), Southern African Association of Health Educationists (SAAHE). She has served in the executive committees of professional associations including PSSA and SAAHIP, and currently serving in SAAHE KZN. She is a member of the WHO Collaborating Center at UKZN and collaborates with other researchers both locally and internationally. Her research interests are in areas such as public health, clinical pharmacy and pharmacovigilance among others.

Dr Nellie Naranjee

Institution: DUT

Dr Veena Singaram

Institution: UKZN

Dr Veena S Singaram, is a senior lecturer Academic Leader of Research at the School of Clinical Medicine, University of KwaZulu-Natal. Her qualifications include a BMedSc (UKZN), MMedSc (UKZN), Certificate in Higher Education Practice (Oxford Brookes University, U.K) and PhD in Health Professions Education (Maastricht University, Netherlands). Dr Singaram is a fellow of the Sub-Saharan African Foundation for Advancement in Medical Education and Research and served on the SAFRI Board.  She served as the SAAHE treasurer for three terms and Chairs the Kwa-Zulu Natal Chapter. She has published widely in health professions education and has graduated, supervised and examined several doctoral and masters students nationally and internationally. She has conducted workshops, presented and chaired at numerous international and national conferences and was appointed the national Conference Chair for the sixth and eleventh SAAHE conferences.   Dr Singaram was awarded several research grants and is a reviewer for several international journals.  Her scholarly interests include: developing student’s potentialities, technology enhanced learning, formative assessment feedback, and collaborative learning environments within a transformative learning paradigm.