Prof. Zukiswa Zingela : Celebrating 30 Years of Democracy towards Women’s Development
As the country celebrates Women's Month, the Department of Science and Innovation
is introducing phenomenal women scientists and researchers who are finalists in it annual South African Women in Science Awards.
Meet Prof. Zukiswa Zingela a SAWISA finalist. Prof. Zingela is the executive dean at Nelson Mandela University (NMU) Faculty of Health Sciences, whose research focuses on catatonia and occupational mental health in the health professions.
She is the immediate second vice president of the International Narcotics Control Board (INCB) and serves as its rapporteur.
She has produced numerous self-help articles through the South African Medical Association and Insider and authored a book on coping skills for the public titled EPT to Bloom, published in late 2023. Her PhD research and related work have significantly impacted both the South African and global mental health fields. During the Covid-19 pandemic, she developed multidisciplinary group interventions resulting in scientific and public-oriented outputs. Her research on catatonia, a relatively unexplored area in South Africa and Africa, has led to the establishment of a multi-site catatonia registry project. Prof. Zingela also collaborated to establish the Ukhanyo Community Clinic at the Missionvale Campus of NMU to address the mental health needs of the community.
Prof. Zingela is the author of approximately 50 peer-reviewed publications in leading international journals, including Science, Nature Genetics, The Lancet, PLOS One, BMJ Open, and BMC Psychology. Additionally, she serves on the editorial board of the South African Journal of Psychiatry. A frequent keynote speaker at international conferences, she has received several national and international awards, including the Discovery Foundation Rural Award in 2020 for her work on botched circumcisions. In 2021, she was an integral part of the team that won the Pamela Sklar Innovation Award for their research on the genetics of psychosis in African populations.
Prof. Zingela has successfully mentored one postdoctoral fellow, supervised 11 master's students, and currently supervises two PhD and four master's students. Registered as a medical research scientist with the Health Professions Council of South Africa (HPCSA) and the General Medical Council in the UK, she is also a Fellow of the College of Psychiatrists of South Africa and a member of the American Psychiatric Association.
