When Professor Simon Schaaf, one of South Africa's most respected pioneers of research into multidrug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB) delivered his farewell speech to colleagues recently, he titled his talk 'A Journey of Grace.'

Schaaf, a distinguished professor in the Department of Paediatrics and Child Health at Stellenbosch University and Tygerberg Hospital, kicked off his talk with a quote from William Osler which reads: “The practice of medicine is an art, not a trade; a calling, not a business; a calling in which your heart will be exercised equally with your head."

This, Schaaf said in an interview, is precisely how he views his remarkable decades-long medical career as a professor, researcher and clinician in the Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences.

“For me, medicine was indeed a calling. I have really enjoyed my career and loved coming to work," he said.

Schaaf, whose work has been hailed for broadening the understanding and management of tuberculosis, especially in children, has been honoured on a number of occasions. He received an A-rating from the National Research Foundation in 2012, and was awarded the highest civilian honour in SA – the Order of Mapungubwe (silver) for his ground-breaking MDR-TB research.

The married father of a 33-year-old son and grandfather of two children who live in the UK, was adamant that, while he might have reached retirement age, he is, in fact, “just moving from one job to another".

“I am currently employed by both the (Western Cape) province and the university. I am retiring from the province as they don't allow you to work after the age of 65. I will continue working with the university for three days a week, doing critical work associated with research. So I am standing down but not retiring!"

Schaaf, who is part of a research team with the Desmond Tutu TB Centre, said besides a few other smaller projects, he will continue with his research on TB in children, with a specific focus on drug-resistant TB.

“I prefer to see this as scaling down a bit. It will, however, be very nice to have some free time to spend with my wife and in the garden," he said.

Schaaf was born in Cape Town in 1956 to parents who were immigrants from the Netherlands. One of five children, he matriculated from Zwaanswyk High School in Retreat and went on to study medicine at Stellenbosch University. He obtained his medical degree in 1980 with a distinction in Paediatrics and his MMed degree in Paediatrics cum laude in 1988. In 2002, he obtained his MD in Paediatrics and Child Health, after which he obtained his FCPaed (SA) by Peer Review from the Colleges of Medicine, South Africa. In 1989, he completed a diploma of Community Medicine, also cum laude.

An active clinician and an infectious diseases subspecialist, Schaaf has done far-reaching research into, among other things the drug resistance surveillance of TB in children, the pharmacokinetics of anti-tuberculosis drugs in children, HIV/TB co-infection, childhood TB diagnosis, TB meningitis and new treatment strategies.

He has published and co-published more than 300 peer-reviewed articles and over 25 book chapters as well as edited two books on tuberculosis. He co-edited the book Tuberculosis: a comprehensive clinical reference, which was published in 2009.

Asked to name some of the highlights of his career, Schaaf said that, as someone who regards himself as primarily a clinician, what he loved most about his work was engaging with his patients. “For me the pleasure lay in seeing them get better. Every time I made a correct diagnosis and watched the patient getting better – especially with complicated cases – was a highlight for me."

He also enjoyed being involved in research. “It followed naturally from the clinical work as you want to improve what you do for the children and the only way to do that is through doing research and getting results that improve children's outcomes. In the process, you get recognition which sometimes you feel is deserved and other times it is just grace.“

Another highlight of his career was producing the book on TB for adults and children, which he said was very well received and which, 12 years since being first published, is still a useful resource.

Obvious highlights were receiving an A-rating from the National Research Council (NRF), which, he said, “came as a surprise"; as well as receiving the highest civilian honour in South Africa, the National Order of Mapungubwe (silver), which, when he first received the letter informing him of the award, he thought was a scam.

He said the HIV era and the experience of witnessing the deaths of children were low points in his career.

“In the early nineties I ran the HIV clinic when there were no ARVs available. You couldn't do much for the children. We gave them the best care we possibly could but many of them still died as there was nothing to control the disease. That was really difficult. It took a long time until we really had good treatment for them. I also worked in the sexual abuse clinic for close to 20 years which was very hard. This service has since moved to Karl Bremer Hospital. I still believe we are not doing enough to protect children against abuse and also sexual abuse. Doctors are reluctant to get involved as it takes up much time and means you may have to go to court. That was quite hard but it was essential to cut yourself off from the patients once they left the door."

While he will still be medically active, Schaaf looks forward to more walks, more hours in his garden and more time with his wife, Francoise, who he calls his biggest supporter.

He paid tribute to a wide range of mentors in his career. “When you work in a hospital or in research, you always work in a team. None of what I have achieved was done on my own."