Alex-born doctor Kgomotso Mathabe reflects on the journey that led her to medicine
Alex's Dr Mathabe reflects on her adventurous life in Alex while on her journey to pursue her successful career in medicine.
Kgomotso Mathabe, a specialist urologist who was raised in the notorious Alexandra, talks about how she defeated the odds on her journey to becoming a doctor.
“As a specialist urologist, I deal with medical conditions of the urinary and genital systems, for example, kidney stones, prostate cancer, complications related to STIs, and male factor infertility,” explained Mathabe.
Mathabe said she began her education at Ekukhanyisweni Primary School in Alex and attended high school at King’s School in Bryanston. She pursued her interest in medicine at the University of Pretoria and Wits University.
Mathabe said her father had worked for a pharmaceutical company and her mother was a nurse, and there were always medical books in their house, which was how she developed a love for medicine.
“When I was in high school, I used to go to work with my mother on some of her nightshift duties and I’d interact with doctors and medical students from Wits.”
Reflecting on growing up, Mathabe said life in Alex was a ‘trip’. “We had communal taps, but no sewer and no electricity until I was 10, meaning up until that time we used to keep water in buckets in the house, we used the bucket toilet system, candles and paraffin lamps as lights and used coal for heating and cooking.
“My favourite meal after school was brown bread with inkomazi [full cream maas] and it still is a favourite even today.
“We grew up at the height of the struggle, in the 80s the townships were on fire, burning tyres and teargas were a norm, and so were the sounds of guns.”
Asked about what Women’s Month meant to her she said, “For me, Women’s Month is a chance for all women to reflect, both personally and collectively.
“The 1956 women’s march was a demonstration against the growing injustices being committed by the apartheid regime. The women responded by getting up and many heard them. I wish women understood how strong and influential they truly are.”
Mathabe advised youngsters in townships to remain hopeful and never give up on their dreams. “I used to catch a taxi from Alex on Saturdays to the libraries of the various neighbouring suburbs such as Orange Grove, Bramley, and Maryvale, and just spend the day reading.
“Avoid falling prey to the adage ‘If you want to hide something from a black man/woman put it in a book’, instead locate the information that will advance you and pursue it.”
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