Family, Community and Emergency Care

Building inclusive communities of care together. Founded in December 2021, launched in August 2023.

The Department of Family, Community and Emergency Care (FaCE) was established by UCT under the leadership of the Faculty of Health Sciences’ deanery and formally approved by Senate in December 2021. This new department brings five clinical generalist disciplines together, namely: Primary Health Care Directorate, Division of Family Medicine, Division of Interdisciplinary Palliative Care and Medicin

e, Division of Emergency Medicine and Sports and Exercise Medicine. As a newly formed department FaCE is in the process of defining its collective Mission Statement and as a first step has agreed on its Massive Transformative Purpose “Building Inclusive Communities of Care Together”, to encompass who we are and how we envisage moving forward together. A bi-weekly Online Seminar Series has been initiated to encourage debate and develop our footprint across the Faculty, University, nationally and globally. The department aims to work alongside the faculty in translating transformational change into action to ignite agency for a just and inclusive society, built on health equity, and align with the University's Vision 2030 for unleashing human potential. As such social responsiveness, social accountability, diversity, inclusivity and serving the community underpin our vision together with contributing to making students fit for purpose. FaCE therefore aspires to healthcare for all, making lives better, nurturing partnerships, human rights, justice, moving humanity forward, holistic health, leaving no-one behind, effecting change in the health care system, purpose-driven research, feeding into curriculum transformation, building key relationships, international and African linkages, graduate retention, engaged scholarship, building a shared understanding of community-based education, partnering towards inclusive healthcare where you are, advancing equitable health for all through community of care, and building healthy communities of care together. https://www.facebook.com/FaCE.newdepar/
https://twitter.com/DeptFCE

Photos from UCT Division of Family Medicine & Palliative Medicine's post

21/08/2026

21/08/2026

We invite colleagues to join us for the next UCT Family Medicine Primary Care Webinar on 27 August 2026.

We are delighted to host Dr Yaseen Khan, who will share insights on "The Future of Digital Healthcare: AI-Enhanced Clinical Decision Support" and its implications for primary care practice, education, and service delivery.

Date: 27 August 2026
Time: 19:00–20:00 (SAST)

Register here:
https://forms.cloud.microsoft/Pages/ResponsePage.aspx?id=NUNFkk5Wz0ywsCREW4wD953ZUFy7cC9AksuR-9iW0B1UMkVURkU2TFU3RkRPWFBCWkE3RloxWDBUSi4u

Please share with colleagues and networks who may be interested. We look forward to an engaging discussion on the future of digital health and primary care.

Family, Community and Emergency Care UCT Faculty of Health Sciences UCT Division of Public Health Medicine World Organization of Family Doctors - WONCA South African Academy of Family Physicians - SAAFP Department of Medicine, UCT UCT School of Public Health EMGuidance

21/08/2026

Thank you for inspiring us with your educational leadership, Rashiqua Holdman!

20/08/2026

The Patient Voice in the Age of AI 🤖🩺
How can we harness AI and technology without losing sight of the people health systems are designed to serve?
Join us for an engaging seminar with Prof. José M. Valderas, exploring the future of people-centred primary health care in the age of AI.

📅 Tuesday, 25 August 2026
📍 UCT Groote Schuur Hospital, E Floor, PHC Boardroom
💻 Online participation available

https://teams.microsoft.com/l/meetup-join/19%3ameeting_ZTNhMjUxYzgtZDhjYi00Y2Q1LWE3N2YtMjIyOTE4ZmFhOTVk%40thread.v2/0?context=%7b%22Tid%22%3a%2292454335-564e-4ccf-b0b0-24445b8c03f7%22%2c%22Oid%22%3a%22feb6f437-7ce9-40fb-99e5-28a0b8c672bf%22%7d

🍽️ 12:00 – Lunch & networking
🎤 13:00 – Seminar

The session will explore how patient-reported outcomes, primary care, health-system measurement and artificial intelligence can contribute to more person-centred, equitable and adaptive health systems.

Come along, connect with colleagues and join the conversation about what the next generation of health systems should measure, value and improve.

Everyone interested in the future of patient-centred health care and AI is welcome!

📧 For more information: [email protected]

UCT Division of Family Medicine & Palliative MedicineUCT Faculty of Health SciencesSouth African Academy of Family Physicians - SAAFP

23/07/2026

🩺 UCT Family Medicine Primary Care Webinar – 23 July 2026 at 18:00 (SAST)

Healthcare professionals are often skilled at caring for others—but how good are we at seeking care for ourselves?

Join Dr Saville Furman for an engaging discussion on:
"Caring for Ourselves: Exploring Help-Seeking Behaviour Among Doctors"

📅 Thursday, 23 July 2026
🕕 18:00–19:00 (South African time)
💻 Online via Microsoft Teams
✅ Free attendance | CPD recorded
🔗 Register here: https://forms.cloud.microsoft/Pages/ResponsePage.aspx?id=NUNFkk5Wz0ywsCREW4wD953ZUFy7cC9AksuR-9iW0B1UMkVURkU2TFU3RkRPWFBCWkE3RloxWDBUSi4u

Hosted by the UCT Division of Family Medicine.

WONCA World Conference 2027 UCT Faculty of Health Sciences Department of Medicine, UCT Family, Community and Emergency Care South African Academy of Family Physicians - SAAFP World Organization of Family Doctors - WONCA Wonca Africa WONCA Rural Working Party Rural Doctors Association of South Africa Southern African HIV Clinicians Society UCT Division of Public Health Medicine UCT School of Public Health

02/07/2026

What does it mean to trust, and to be entrusted?

At SAAHE 2026, delegates gathered to celebrate the launch of Trust and Entrustability in Medical Specialist Training in South Africa: An Ubuntu-inspired Pedagogy.

Edited by Tasleem Ras, Lionel Green-Thompson, Vanessa Burch, Sumaiya Adam and Louis Jenkins, this important volume invites us to rethink specialist training through an Ubuntu-informed lens, where trust is not merely assessed, but cultivated through relationships, context and shared humanity.

A meaningful milestone for South African health professions education, and a reminder that the most enduring educational innovations are grounded in the values that shape how we learn, teach and care.

Congratulations to the editors, chapter authors and everyone who contributed to bringing this work to life.

Unravelling the future of health professions education, one conversation at a time.

11/03/2026

Abstract Categories:

Original Research
Educational Innovation
Community-Engaged Project and Participatory Action Research
Quality Improvement
Case Report and Reflective Choose General Practicehttps://saafp.org/call-for-abstracts-2026/
Rural Doctors Association of South Africa Rural Health Conference Wits - University of the Witwatersrand UCT Division of Family Medicine & Palliative MedicineUFS Faculty of Health SciencesUFS Faculty of Health SciencesStellenbosch University, Faculty of Medicine and Health SciencesSchool of Health Systems and Public Health at the University of PretoriaWalter Sisulu UniversityNelson Mandela University