Graduate earns PhD at 82 and champions family-centred postnatal care

At 82, Dolly Nontuthuzelo Nyasulu has earned a PhD in Public Health from the University of KwaZulu-Natal (UKZN) for research that could strengthen care for mothers and newborns.

Her doctoral study, A Family-Centred Postnatal Care Approach in Rural KwaZulu-Natal Province, South Africa, explores how families can become more meaningfully involved in postnatal care.

“I feel incredibly good and very excited,” Nyasulu says. “I still can’t believe that I have made it to the finish line. It has been such a long journey, with many challenges along the way, so reaching this point feels very special to me.”

Bringing families into postnatal care

Nyasulu’s research examines a family-centred approach in which relatives work collaboratively with healthcare providers, including midwives, to care for mothers and their newborns.

The study is supervised by Professor Myra Taylor and Dr Nelisiwe Khuzwayo and draws on Nyasulu’s decades of experience in nursing, midwifery, maternal and newborn health, education and healthcare policy.

Midwives and other key informants respond positively to the approach and suggest ways of strengthening family involvement even before a baby is born.

Nyasulu believes that successfully implementing family-centred care could strengthen the continuum of maternal and newborn care and potentially help save the lives of mothers and babies.

Although family-centred care is not a new concept internationally, she notes that it has not yet been fully implemented in South Africa’s healthcare system.

A career devoted to mothers and babies

Born in King William’s Town in the Eastern Cape, Nyasulu is the eldest of nine children. Her professional journey begins with general nursing, followed by midwifery, psychiatric nursing, advanced midwifery and neonatal nursing.

She later completes a Bachelor of Nursing in Community Health Nursing and Nursing Administration, followed by a clinical master’s degree in nursing, specialising in maternal, child and women’s health.

Her passion for maternal and newborn care begins during her nursing training at Livingstone Hospital in Port Elizabeth in 1964. She is fascinated by the stories of midwives who travel to women’s homes to deliver babies.

These births involve entire families, with relatives participating in different ways to support the mother and the midwife.

The experiences leave a lasting impression on the young nurse and inspire her to specialise in midwifery.

“This study feels like a full-circle moment for me,” Nyasulu says. She spends decades studying and practising midwifery before returning to the importance of family involvement in childbirth and maternal care.

Her career includes serving as KwaZulu-Natal Provincial Maternal, Child and Women’s Health Coordinator and working on initiatives focused on maternal and newborn health.

She also contributes to midwifery education, healthcare policy and the development of national and provincial maternal and newborn care guidelines.

Persevering through personal loss

Nyasulu’s doctoral journey is marked by significant personal challenges. During her studies, she loses her daughter in 2019, followed by two brothers and, a few years later, her husband, Guy, who had been her greatest supporter.

She also experiences health challenges and has to adapt to the technological demands of postgraduate study.

With the support of her family and supervisors, she perseveres.

“In many ways, I feel that I did not walk this journey alone,” she says. “There were people around me who carried me when I no longer felt I could carry myself.”

Her determination is also inspired by her parents’ belief in education and the encouragement of her late brother, Professor Leonard Vuyani Mabinya, who motivated her to pursue studies beyond a master’s degree.

A lifelong commitment to learning

Although retired, Nyasulu remains open to new opportunities and passionate about contributing to maternal, newborn and women’s health.

Her academic achievement adds another chapter to a lifetime devoted to serving mothers, babies, families and healthcare professionals.

By earning her PhD at 82, Nyasulu carries a powerful message for future generations: it is never too late to learn, persevere and make a meaningful contribution to society.