Johannesburg – The Molises are not only sisters, but they are also twins and medical doctors who graduated from the University of the Free State (UFS) faculty of health sciences during the December virtual graduation ceremony.
“It feels really amazing to graduate with my twin. I feel like it makes things easier for both of us because we can help each other. Studying medicine has always been a childhood dream. I’ve always loved helping people, so I knew that if I studied medicine, I could do that everyday of my life,” says Keitumetse Molise.
She says studying medicine with her twin made things easier, as she could ask her sister to explain things that she might not have understood and vice-versa.
They could work together on a problem if both of them did not understand it. Boitumelo Molise says studying medicine is physically, emotionally and mentally taxing at times.
“As a medical student, you have to be selfish with your time. The majority of your time is taken up by studying. At times it felt like 24 hours were not enough. There were times when we had to miss even family functions just to study.
“As a student, you have to attend ward rounds, be on call as part of the practical training. Also, being in the hospital you see very sick patients and deal with death. This is quite challenging,” she says.
Keitumetse says 2020 was very challenging and stressful for her.
“The pandemic has brought about so many unexpected changes to our academic programme.
“We had to adapt to new ways of learning, which had its own challenges; however, I am grateful to our faculty because they did all they could to ensure that we finish the academic year,” she says. Boitumelo says the UFS has the best specialists and lecturers in the country. It provides an excellent platform to learn.
“For me, it’s also amazing because I had so many doctors and specialists from Botshabelo who I look up to.
“Graduating now is not just about me getting the title, but it’s about me finally being in a position where I can make a difference, not only in the community I grew up in, but my country as a whole.”
They will be specialising in different fields, says Boitumelo. “My twin and I definitely have different interests. She loves to be in theatre, thus I am sure she’ll go into surgery. I thrive in obstetrics and gynaecology. It was a module that I absolutely loved.
“I am passionate about female reproductive health and believe there’s plenty to be done in that discipline,” says Boitumelo.
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