Violet Ngobeni is the new nursing services manager at Thembalami Care Centre, following the retirement of long-serving matron Paulina Namo.
Violet joined Rand Aid Association in 2023, working as a charge professional nurse at the Max Ordman Deaf Association, which forms part of the Thembalami complex.
“I was mentored by Paulina. We worked very hard together to make sure we give quality care to our residents,” she says. “Thembalami is a good fit for me. In my final years of nursing, I want to contribute meaningfully and impact the lives of our residents.”
Her career in nursing spans nearly three decades. She first trained as an auxiliary nurse in the late 1990s, later qualifying as an enrolled nurse before completing her nursing diploma. Along the way, she gained experience at Lydenburg Hospital and Rob Ferreira Hospital in Mbombela.
She went on to join the Mediclinic Group, where she became a shift leader in the trauma unit. Colleagues and patients remember her as the nurse who would draw blood from the same site where she had inserted a drip. “I didn’t want my patients to be pricked twice. Babies and immunocompromised people are especially challenging when it comes to finding veins,” she explains.
Her reputation for skill and care impressed pathology companies that worked alongside her in the trauma unit, and she accepted a post with Ampath, working as a night shift sister. When her family relocated to Johannesburg in 2015, she continued with Ampath, running a one-person depot in Parkwood.
In 2019, Violet began working with a doctor in Linksfield and even started her own practice, managing a team of call-out nurses. Sadly, the venture did not survive the Covid-19 pandemic. Ampath approached her again, and she returned to the company, first as a call-out sister and later in a permanent role.
By 2023, however, Violet felt the pull back to direct patient care. “I realised that the pledge I made as a nurse was not being fulfilled. I was missing bedside nursing – giving that therapeutic touch to my patients is the most crucial part of nursing,” she says.
Now leading the nursing team at Thembalami, Violet has a clear vision: “We need to cultivate a spirit of trust and understanding, and make Thembalami a happy place for everyone who calls it home – and for everyone who works here.”
Violet is married, has two sons and a daughter, and is a proud grandmother to a young grandson.
