​​​​​Department of Paediatrics and Child Health

​Staff 

Dr Liezl Smit

Dr Liezl Smit is a general paediatrician based at the Paediatric Emergency and Ambulatory Unit at Tygerberg Hospital. As a (typical) generalist she has varied interests, but with the ultimate aim of providing excellent care for our children in South Africa.

Before joining the Unit in November 2011, Dr Smit was the Clinical Program Director for the USAID sponsored programme, 'South to South Partnership for Comprehensive Family HIV Care & Treatment', a healthcare worker capacity building programme. During her time at South to South, she completed a MSc in Child Health (cum laude) at Warwick University, UK, an Advanced Health Management Programme (AHMP) certificate (cum laude) from the Foundation for Professional Development & Yale University, and a two year Improvement Advisor certificate from the Institute for Healthcare Improvement (IHI), Cambridge, USA.

With a special interest in medical education, Dr Smit then completed a  MPhil in Health Science Education (cum laude) at the University of Stellenbosch. She is a SAFRI (Sub-Saharan Africa-FAIMER Regional Institute) Fellow (2017) and currently involved in various undergraduate education and research activities at the Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences at Stellenbosch University.

She plans to embark on a PhD in Medical Education soon, but would really like to do a MBA as well in the future!

 

Current Committee membership (2018):

  • MBChB 2020 Curriculum Project Management Team, member
  • New MBChB 2020 Curriculum Programme Committee (NPCP), member
  • MBChB 2020 Module team member for 'Clinical Rotations' and 'Distributed Apprenticeship'
  • Current MBChB Program committee member
  • MBChB Assessment Quality Improvement committee Chair
  • Paediatric Undergraduate Education Chair (for MBChB 2020)
  • Early Phase Paediatric Clinical Rotation Chair
  • Registrar HR representative, Department of Paediatrics and Child Health
  • Tygerberg Sub-District Child Health Forum, member

     

    Publications:
  • Smit L, Meyer R, Crafford I, Parris D. Exploring the Experience of Postgraduate Students in their Transition from a Health Science to an Educational Scholarship in an African university setting. SOTL in the South. Accepted for Publication July 2017.
  • Finlayson H, Smit L, Kruger M. The Impact Of A Change In Referral Pathway  On  A Paediatric  Short Stay Ward In Cape Town, South Africa. The South African Journal of Child Health 2016; 10 (2):134-138.
  • Smit L. Pneumonia in Children. AFEM Handbook of Acute and Emergency Care. Oxford University Press, First Edition 2013.
  • Smit L. Approach to Breathing Difficulties in Children. AFEM Handbook of Acute and Emergency Care. Oxford University Press, First Edition 2013.
  • Smit L, Hassan H. Realising Children's Rights in Healthcare. SAPR 2012; 9(3):27-42
  • Smit L. Cough in patients on ARVs. HIV Nursing Matters 2012; 3(2):22-24
  • Liezl Smit, Angela Dramowski, Kevin Clarke, Janine Clayton, Annemadelein Scherer, Amy Slogrove, Happyson Musvosvi, Marina Rifkin and Mark Cotton. Chapter: Medical interventions for Paediatric HIV: Challenges and solutions in policy implementation - Moving from research to action. Oxford University Press, 2011
  • Smit L. Are Children Small Adults? HIV Nursing Matters 2011; 2(3):22-24
  • Smit L, Diergaardt C, Fourie S, Matshikwe N, Letsoalo M. Nurses, HIV and Paediatrics. HIV Nursing Matters 2011; 2(3):22-24