She is a passionate leader with more than a decade’s experience in management of international NGOs in Africa. She has executed global clinical research programmes for 14 countries in Europe, Middle East, and sub-Saharan Africa. In SA she was executive director of the Topsy Foundation and technical advisor and senior operations manager for mothers2mothers, before taking the reins at HPCA in August 2019.
CEO
Bulelani holds Master in Management (Public and Development Management) from Wits, Honours Bachelor of Commerce and Bachelor of Commerce from Unisa and Comprehensive Diploma in Nursing from Transkei College of Nursing. He is studying towards DrPH in Global Health Leadership with Indiana University in USA. He is currently employed at The Aurum Institute as Executive Fellow in the Office of the CEO undergoing Advance Executive Development. He was the Managing Director for Health Systems Division and Principal Investigator for CDC grants. He oversaw implementation of the following projects among other things, Care and Treatment, Community HIV Testing, Voluntary Medical Male Circumcision, Prevention for Key Populations and Priority Populations, Orphans and Vulnerable Children, Surveillance Studies for Key Populations. These projects were funded by US President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) through Centres for Disease Prevention and Control (CDC).
He is a Public Health Specialist with more 18 years’ experience in managing HIV and AIDS and TB prevention, care and treatment programmes. He has worked in the public, private and the not for profit sectors. His passion is on increasing access to health care services and improving quality of health care services. His strengths include programme and project management, leadership and governance, operational management, financial management, human resources management, stakeholder management. He is also serves as a board member of Yoga4Alex and Centre for HIV and AIDS Prevention Studies (CHAPS).
Chairperson
In 1996, he had the privilege of meeting the Catholic Bishop of Rustenburg, Kevin Dowling. It was during this time that his humanitarian nature emerged and together they established Tapologo’s first Home-based Care (Outreach) Programme in an informal settlement. The Programme grew rapidly into 8 Centres covering 14 villages/settlements with 2000-3000 patients at any one point in time.
The ravages of the disease became increasing apparent, as was the rapid progression and increasing death rate. In response Tapologo expanded to incorporate a Hospice: 24-bed In-patient Unit (IPU) in 2004, and Palliative Care (PC) for HIV patients was now accessible in the IPU and within our Outreach services.
The disease was also having a profound effect on families and to try and prevent and treat those infected by HIV/AIDS, Tapologo embarked on an Anti-Retroviral Treatment Programme in 2004 and have since successfully treated 5000+ patients, continuing today. An Orphaned/Vulnerable Children’s Programme was also implemented in 2004 with 600+ children currently in care.
Stephen’s devotion to promoting human welfare and advancement of social reforms has resulted in particular achievements whereby Tapologo achieved the prescribes of the 90-90-90 Programme long before this initiative was devised in SA; a Defaulter (LTFU) rate comfortably within Government targets (2-5%); we believe we were the first Hospice to provide comprehensive PC to specifically HIV patients.
Stephen is currently Tapologo’s CEO; Board member of the HPCA(SA); Founding member and Chairperson of the NWHA; Chairperson and Facilitator of the RHF.
During his leisure time, Stephen enjoys spending time with his two daughters and is a firm believer in the therapeutic powers of Golf.
Provincial Chair of North West Province Hospice Association
Tersia’s only child, Vicky Bruce was born with a rare and degenerative connective tissue disorder, Osteogenesis Imperfecta. By her 3rd birthday Vicky had suffered 41 fractures. Despite a prognosis of “life limiting” Vicky survived her childhood and got married at the age of 21. At the age of 22 she gave birth to the first of two sons.
In 2012 the doctors said there was no further curative treatment available. The last 10 years of her life was filled with 81 abdominal surgeries, septicaemia, excruciating pain, total loss of dignity and hopelessness. Five months before Vicky’s death Tersia managed to secure help from Hospice Wits for her child. Two months before her death Vicky asked her mother to start a Hospice in Alberton so “no-one will suffer the way she did”.
On the 1st of January 2013 Stepping Stone Hospice started operating out of Tersia’s home in Alberton. Vicky sadly died on the 18th of January 2013.
Tersia is passionate about Palliative Care for All. She honours her child’s legacy every single day at Stepping Stone Hospice & Care Services.
Tersia is Regional Chairperson of the GP HPCA Board and serves on the HPCA Board, Accreditation Committee, Sustainability Committee, Standards Review Committee, Finance Committee and is Chairperson of the Mentorship Committee.
Chairperson of Hospice Association of Gauteng
He is Executive Director of Health Equity Partners, a healthcare consultancy and investment advisor.
He was the founding CEO of the Board of Healthcare Funders and has extensive private healthcare corporate experience.
He is a veteran of the healthcare sector, with public health activism and trade union experience from the eighties and nineties. He participated in the development of health policy for a post-Apartheid SA and has held ministerial appointment as Chairman of Charlotte Maxeke Johannesburg Academic Hospital, the Medicine Pricing Committee and the Road Accident Fund.
Co-opted Member, Executive Director of Health Equity Partners
Nicola has a Bachelors of Social Sciences (B.Soc.Sci) and a Bachelors of Law (LLB) from Rhodes University, and has a passion for supporting the realization of rights for vulnerable communities.
Born in Cape Town, Nicola has lived in many areas throughout South Africa and neighbouring countries, including Namibia and Mozambique. She is currently happily settled in Tzaneen where she is raising her three children and remains committed to improving the health and development of rural communities through the work of CHoiCe Trust.
Chairperson of Eastern Cape Hospice Association
Barend Kellerman acquired his BA LLB degree from Stellenbosch University in 1997. He was admitted as an attorney in 2000. After practising with the firm Kellerman Hendrikse Inc. for more than 15 years, he joined Aimee Joubert to start Kellerman Joubert Incorporated (now Kellerman Joubert Heyns Incorporated).
He is primarily involved in the drafting of contracts and in the field of commercial litigation in the High Court, Magistrates’ Court and private arbitrations. He also deals with constitutional law, sports law (especially doping offences), insurance law, matrimonial disputes and property law. He is admitted as an attorney in the High Court.
He was involved in the Tygerberg Attorneys Association for many years and serves as Commissioner in the Small Claims Court in Bellville. He also serves as a director of the Cape of Good Hope SPCA as part of his service to the community.
Co-opted Member, Kellerman Joubert Inc. Attorneys
As the lead pastor of First City Baptists personal assistant many years ago, Melissa helped with securing PEPFAR funding for the church’s grassroots HIV AIDS NPO, Sophumelela Clinic. She then felt the call to shift her fulltime focus to non-governmental organisation management.
She spent 7 years in middle management as a Grants Compliance Officer and Technical Assistant for Organisational Change at Sophumelela Centre, the mother body of Hope Schools. She moved on to become the General Manager in July 2012 and joined St Bernard’s Hospice as their CEO in 2016.
She is passionate about eradicating social injustices and advocating for Palliative Care as a basic human right. She has a solution-oriented mind set to daily problems. She enjoys finding tools that can facilitate growth and performance, and thrives on providing relevant and tangible help to others.
She became Regional Chair for the Eastern Cape in 2019, and remains in this capacity.
She is happily married to her high school sweetheart and have two children. Joshua, who is 4 and Zoe, who is 15 months.
She loves the Lord with all her heart and is thankful for His promise that He will complete the good work that He has started in us.
Chairperson of Eastern Cape Hospice Association
She obtained her B.Rad. (Diagnostic) in 1993 from the University of the Free State, and while living in Germany for thirteen year obtained a Honours Degree in Psychology (UNISA) in 2000. Back in South- Africa she obtained a Post-Graduate Diploma in Counseling from SACAP in Cape Town, and did practical work at St. Luke’s Hospice, The Compassionate Friends and The Red Cross Children’s Hospital. After moving back to Bloemfontein in 2016 she, she co-founded the Hospice Bloemfontein in 2017. In 2019 she finished a Post-Graduate Diploma in Palliative Care at the University of Cape town, and is currently busy with her M.Phil. in Palliative Care at UCT.
Hanneke is the General Manager of Hospice Bloemfontein, and also works as a counsellor with patients and their families. She is the Chairperson of the Free State Hospice Association.
Hanneke is married to Jan, and has a daughter in high school.
Chairperson of Free State Association
Warren matriculated in 1987 and went on to complete a Masters in Theology at the University of Natal in 1996. He was an ordained Priest in the Anglican Church of South Africa and served as rector of the parish of Estcourt.
Warren began his involvement in Hospice and Palliative care in 1998 and went on to be an active volunteer in the Estcourt Hospice Association and eventually General Manager of Estcourt Hospice. He later was offered the post of CEO of Msunduzi Hospice in Pietermaritzburg. Warren is a past chairperson of the Hospice Association of KwaZulu-Natal and is currently the vice chairperson and representative to the HPCA Board. Warren’s passion is quality improvement and the accreditation programme.
Warren relaxes well with a fine bottle of wine or a well aged cognac and truly enjoys the great South African pastime of a Braai.
Provincial Vice-Chair of Kwazulu Natal
Religious wise, I am a member of the Roman Catholic Church. My hobbies are singing, entertaining others and reading.
In the year 2001, I was elected chairperson of Nightingale Hospice for a period of 4 years. 2005, I was than appointed as Program Manager at Nightingale Hospice to date.
I thereafter studied Project Management Certificate Course and completed it in 2007 through The Genesis Group.
Since my inception 2001 at The Nightingale Hospice, I have participated in a number of workshops, conferences and trainings and shared whatever experiences, knowledge and skills I have encountered regarding management and the Governing Board.
Engagement and Bodies served:
- I have also served for a period of 2 years as a Paediatric Palliative Care representative and 9years as Chairperson for Northern Cape at the National Hospice Palliative Care Association South Africa.
- In 2009 have been elected Provincial Regional Chairperson for the Northern Cape organisations. I also have been serving at the Karoo Hospital Board for the past six years liaising with all the PHC Clinic Committees giving advice on health and governance issues.
- Currently I’m training all hospice organisations in Governance Accountability Leadership, Management and Mentoring all organisations of Pixley Ka Seme through the partnership of provincial DOH.
Provincial Chair of Northern Cape Hospice Association
Fran qualified as a social worker and completed her Master’s Degree in Pastoral Therapy, specialising in Narrative Therapy. In 1999 Fran joined Drakenstein Hospice in Paarl as a social worker and later became the patient care manager.
In 2008, Fran was appointed by the Hospice Palliative Care Association of South Africa (HPCA) where, she provided mentorship and training to assist member hospices, NGOs and government institutions to develop and grow their capacity to provide palliative care. Fran is involved in the development and review of psychosocial palliative care training courses and still trains when she has the time and opportunity.
In January 2016, Fran joined Overstrand Hospice as the general manager. Being deeply passionate about palliative care, Fran hopes to continue to support and enable health care providers deliver this critical aspect of health care.
Having lived below mountains for most of her life, Fran loves hiking and trailing. She has three special men in her life (for clarity: her husband and two sons), who, for the most, have kept her from complacency.
Provincial Chair of Western Cape Hospice Association