About

Objectives

To promote and develop in the healthcare field:

  1. All aspects of design, engineering, and technology, including construction, commissioning, and maintenance of buildings, plant, equipment, machinery and apparatus.
  2. The principle of integrated design by improved collaboration amongst all professions.
  3. The more efficient management of planning, operation, maintenance and safety.
  4. The advancement of education of personnel.
  5. The encouragement throughout the world of the unrestricted acquisition, exchanges, and spread of information, and research.
  6. The arranging of conferences, seminars and discussions to provide a medium of communication for interested persons on a professional and industrial basis.
  7. The evaluation of professional standards and etiquette, and establishment of good relationships between members and other bodies interested in or having objectives similar to those of SAFHE.
  8. The encouragement, investigation and publicising of innovations which may be of benefit to members, and assist in the furtherance of the objectives of SAFHE.

Activities

The regional branches of SAFHE, with a membership totalling about 260, have programmes geared to local interests.  Talks, seminars, discussions and workshops, on a variety of subjects take place regularly.  SAFHE national conferences covering particular themes have been held at two yearly intervals since 1977, and have attracted delegates from Sub-Saharan Africa and abroad. The most recent of these popular events was held at Sun City in 2005, which were attended by more than 300 delegates, including representatives of all the provincial departments of health within South Africa.

Members of SAFHE have presented papers at congresses of the International Federation of Hospital Engineering at many venues abroad.  Since its admission as an “A” member, SAFHE has participated in all IFHE Council meetings, and from 1990 has had a member on its Executive Committee.  SAFHE hosted the 19th IFHE congresses in Cape Town, in May 2006 – a highly successful event attended by delegates from over 30 countries. The theme of the congress was “Healthcare engineering in developing countries” which elicited many papers of a high standard.

As a consequence of its conference and congress activities, SAFHE is able to provide assistance to appropriate individuals to further their experience and training in the field of healthcare engineering.