Dr Grace Sangoni Foundation

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a 200-bed health and social welfare facility operating in Ncambedlana, Mthatha (O.R. Tambo District, Eastern Cape) since 1999, with a Foundation address in Vincent, East London. The Memorial Centre provides quality primary health care and chronic care services to one of the Eastern Cape's most underserved populations, with a particular focus on HIV/AIDS: in-patient nursing care, HIV counselling and testing, TB and chronic medication adherence support, food security, nutritional support, a day care centre for recreational, cultural, spiritual, and handcraft activities, and a training programme for community caregivers (home-based care, first aid, counselling) who conduct door-to-door visits and patient follow-up in surrounding communities. The facility also functions as a **crisis centre** for HIV/AIDS patients in urgent need, the aged, people with disabilities, the chronically ill, HIV/AIDS orphans awaiting foster placement, and displaced or abandoned adults — providing short-term refuge until appropriate permanent solutions are found. Academic partnerships with Walter Sisulu University Faculty of Health Sciences and Lilitha Nursing College place students at the centre for practical training. The Dr Grace Sangoni Foundation also supports: medical assistance for people in remote areas; family support (food, shelter, clothing); educational bursaries for youth pursuing medical careers; and community events for rural youth. NPO 016 938 / PBO 930049781. Phone: 047 534 5103 / 087 551 0827.

Children & Youth Community Development Crisis Services Disability Support Health & HIV/AIDS

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About

he Memorial Centre: What It Does

The DGSMC is a 200-bed inpatient facility providing 24-hour clinical care, primarily for HIV/AIDS-affected patients and those living with chronic conditions. Its core mandate is to relieve pressure on an overstretched public health system by providing quality, cost-efficient care for patients requiring chronic nursing, rehabilitation, and support that public hospitals cannot consistently deliver.

In-patient services include: intensive clinical nursing care; chronic medication management for TB and HIV (including adherence support and treatment compliance education); HIV counselling and testing; food security and nutritional support; rehabilitation; and a day care centre providing daily recreational, cultural, spiritual, and handcraft activities for patients well enough to participate.

The DGSMC frames its uniqueness as being grounded in one-to-one patient care — a holistic model that addresses the whole person, and the family around them, rather than processing people through an impersonal system.

Community Outreach Programme

Parallel to its in-patient work, the DGSMC runs a structured home-based care outreach. All outreach volunteers complete a six-week orientation programme before deployment, covering the philosophy and values of the centre, health and safety, peer support group facilitation, and community-specific information.

Deployed community caregivers conduct door-to-door visits to chronically ill and HIV-positive patients in their homes: bathing, feeding, and cleaning where necessary; collecting medication from clinics on patients' behalf; educating families about disease transmission, treatment compliance, and health-seeking behaviours; and identifying new cases for referral. Doctors rotate through the programme to supervise caregivers and examine patients.

Crisis Centre Function

The DGSMC's crisis centre function is directly relevant to GBV-adjacent situations. The centre provides refuge for: HIV/AIDS patients in urgent need; aged and disabled persons in crisis; chronically ill individuals without adequate home support; HIV/AIDS orphans awaiting foster placement or DSD intervention; and displaced or abandoned adults with nowhere to go. For social workers and GBV organisations managing cases in the O.R. Tambo area where home situations have broken down — including through domestic violence — the DGSMC can serve as a holding environment while appropriate placements are arranged.

The Foundation's Additional Programmes

The Foundation, based in Vincent, East London, funds the Memorial Centre and separately supports: medical assistance for people in remote areas; family support (food, shelter, clothing for needy families); educational bursaries for youth pursuing medical careers across the full healthcare spectrum; and community events targeting rural youth (including school shoe, bag, stationery, and uniform collection drives).

Academic Partnerships

The DGSMC has formal partnerships with Walter Sisulu University Faculty of Health Sciences and Lilitha Nursing College, hosting students for supervised practical training — building the healthcare workforce for the O.R. Tambo region over time.

Donors

The centre has received support from First Rand Foundation, Dimension Data, the European Union / Eastern Cape Department of Health, Eskom Foundation, the National Lottery, Mvezo Trust / Alimdaad Foundation, Tsogo Sun, the OR Tambo Mayor's office, and others.

Relevance to GBV Survivors

The DGSMC is not a GBV shelter or rape crisis service. However, in O.R. Tambo District — where dedicated GBV infrastructure is thin and travel distances to specialist services are significant — the centre's crisis care function, home-based care network, and welfare support for displaced and vulnerable individuals make it a meaningful partner in the broader GBV response. For organisations and social workers in Mthatha and the wider O.R. Tambo area, the DGSMC is a known welfare facility with capacity to assist.

Dr Grace Sangoni Memorial Centre: Santa Complex, 1 Nqadu Road, Ncambedlana, Mthatha, 5099. Phone: 087 551 0827. NPO 016 938 / PBO 930049781. Foundation: 13 Buccholtz Street, Vincent, East London. Phone: 047 534 5103. Website: drgracesangoni.org.