Chuma Busakhwe Reflects on Presentation at EHP Conference

Early career researcher, and research assistant for the Adolescent Accelerators Research Hub (AARHub), Chuma Busakhwe reflects on their first conference, attending and presenting at the  37th Annual European Health Psychology Society in Bremen, Germany from the 4-8 September 2023. This year's conference theme was: Health Psychology for all: Equity, Inclusiveness and Transformation. 

Chuma was the presenting author of "The mental health of HIV-affected young mothers: Qualitative insights from South Africa" which was co-authored by Christina Laurenzi, Yanga Dipa, Babalo Gqaleni-Ntozonke, Jane Kelly and Elona Toska. She presented on behalf of the AARHub and the HEY BABY research project. 

"Attending the 37th Annual European Health Psychology Society was a huge achievement for me, as it was my first international presentation. It was the best experience of my life, I got an opportunity to not only present my research but also an opportunity to network with researchers from all over the world and build my research profile. Thank you to the UCT team and HEY BABY team for their support and contribution to this research." - Chuma Busakhwe

Chuma Busakhwe is a Research Assistant for the Accelerate Hub. She joined the team in 2022 and she supports the implementation, data collection, analysis, and report writing of the Screen & Support Package in Zambia. Chuma has previously worked as a Youth Researcher for the Institute of Life Course Health Research at Stellenbosch University. Chuma holds a BA in Psychology & Sociology degree from the University of the Western Cape. She completed her Bachelor of Social Science Honours in Psychology in 2021 from the University of Cape Town. She is currently pursuing her Masters in Psychological Research at the University of Cape. Her research interest includes youth mental health, early motherhood, HIV, and Gender-Based Violence.