Athenkosi Sobada
Nominee's Province:
Western Cape
Age:
29
Project Name/Description:
A young Western Cape paramedic is bringing lifesaving emergency care to some of the most dangerous townships on the Cape Flats and bridging community trust at the same time. Red Zones are areas where dangerous conditions force ambulances to wait for police escorts before responding to emergencies. The delayed care, often during the critical golden hour, where emergency treatment is most critical, can have tragic outcomes for patients. Refusing to accept this, Athie spearheaded a community intervention by embedding himself in Nyanga and Gugulethu. He runs a grassroots trauma and first-aid training course which empowers local volunteers to act as immediate, on-the-scene lifesavers. “These volunteers are able to do safe, on-scene interventions in life-or-death situations and also rebuild vital trust between emergency medical services and the communities we serve,” he says. Athenkosi’s reputation as an innovative public servant has seen him be in high demand to train medical personnel across South Africa in paediatric emergency care. “My work focuses on children under the age of five and tries to ensure that, whether they live in a rural or urban area, they are still receiving the best care possible.”
