Dr Taz Emran-Thomas:
Empowering the unemployed
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Audio Title: Taz Emran-Thomas: Empowering the the unemployed
Description: It's been a demanding two days for Dr. Taz Emeran-Thomas: from photo shoots to a demo video for healthcare workers, topped off with a trip to Mamelodi. Despite the whirlwind, she maintains a constant smile, only occasionally expressing irritation about her unruly hair.
It’s been a demanding two days for Dr. Taz Emeran-Thomas: from photo shoots to a demo video for healthcare workers, topped off with a trip to Mamelodi.
Despite the whirlwind, she maintains a constant smile, only occasionally expressing irritation about her unruly hair.
Seated in an available office, we manage a brief interview before rushing off to Mamelodi to meet Dr. Oupa, a medical professional interested in partnering with Med-e-Screen.
My first question seems straightforward: “You raised half a million Rand in twenty-four hours. Why?”
Dr. Taz smiles. “I love this question – it’s amazing.”
Taz’s entrepreneurial journey began in her fourth year when she received sponsorship for her medical studies.
However, upon completing her final exam in the sixth year, she discovered an outstanding debt to the university, as her sponsor had vanished.
Turning to social media for help, she appealed for donations to clear her debt, receiving contributions in small increments of fifty and hundreds.
“I feel like people gave me their last to help me pay for my studies. And I feel like I owe it to them – I owe the people. That’s why I am ‘the people’s doctor’.”
Taz Emran-Thomas
Child of God | Executive Director - Dr Taz & Dr Joy | CEO - Med-e-Screen | Advocate for Unemployed Doctors | Affordable & Accessible Healthcare | Public Speaker | Mail & Guardian 200 Young South Africans Award '24
Back to the beginning
But let’s jump back to the beginning; where did the desire to “become a doctor when I grow up” come from?
“I had my son at fifteen” is something not many will talk about openly.
But to Dr Taz, this fearful and uncertain time in her life formed the cornerstone of what she is today.
For three months, Taz watched and waited over her premature son in prenatal care.
The doctors came and went, doing their rounds, making sure all was well with the tiny souls in their care. But some doctors took the time to make sure the frightened teenager was also okay.
“I was surrounded by people who looked like mothers. And I felt like I was just this child. [The doctors] made me feel like a mom."
– Taz Emran-Thomas
It was there that Taz decided to become a doctor who treated all with dignity and respect. “I knew then that that’s what I wanted to do when I grew up. I didn’t know how, but I knew then.”
Years later, her son walked her proudly down the aisle at her wedding.
Back to the beginning
After medical school, Dr Taz joined the 825 unemployed doctors in South Africa.
To Dr Taz this made no sense; why have unemployed doctors in a country where there is less than one doctor for every one thousand patients?
Disturbed by this incongruity, she joined fellow unemployed doctors and led a protest advocating for change, presenting demands to the office of the Presidency.
Yet, even after assurances from the department, many doctors remain without employment, leaving patients waiting for hours to receive care.
Dr Taz’s favourite quote is by Toni Morris; “If you have some power, then your job is to empower somebody else.”
Now was the time to put that quote into practice.
In her latest endeavour, Taz has teamed up with Med-e-Screen to connect unemployed doctors with needy communities through the Med-e-Screen backpack.
This portable screening kit enables medical practitioners to reach remote areas and promptly diagnose high-risk diseases, ensuring timely intervention.
In closing, if Dr. Taz could be summarised in a single sentence, it would be: A woman with a boundless heart, dedicated to serving others with unwavering passion, even if her hair occasionally gets in the way.
Teagan specialises in Copywriting, Public Relations, Social Media Marketing and Blogging. Teagan uncovers the deeper “why” behind every venture. She believes that every person and project has a unique story, and nothing excites her more than transforming these narratives into compelling content that demands to be shared with the world.
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