Obstetrics & Gynaecology

The Department of Obstetrics & Gynaecology is part of the School of Clinical Medicine in the Faculty of Health Sciences at the University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg. It is a clinical and academic department whose publication record centres on maternal, fetal and reproductive health.

Its main research strengths lie in maternal and neonatal outcomes, emergency obstetric care and health system performance. Work on postpartum haemorrhage, prevention of HIV vertical transmission, thromboembolism and cardiac disease in pregnancy shows a focus on high-risk pregnancies and complex comorbidities, alongside rare gynaecological malignancies.

Further themes include climate change and heat exposure, with attention to pathways linking environmental stress to preterm birth and neonatal risk. The department also pursues implementation research and systematic reviews. Its research is focused on South Africa and Sub-Saharan Africa, particularly low- and middle-income settings, where it addresses context-relevant improvements in obstetric care.