The 2025 Pholela Lectureship has been awarded to Prof Nicholas Crisp.

Prof Crisp is a medical doctor and public health medicine specialist and Honorary Professor in Public Health Medicine at University of Pretoria. He was Superintendent General (HOD) of the Department of Health and Welfare in Limpopo where he served from 1995 to 1999.

Prof Crisp was then a self-employed consultant and has worked on projects in several African countries including South Africa, Nigeria, Ghana, Lesotho, Botswana, Namibia and Tanzania. He was intimately involved in the establishment of the National Health Laboratory Service (NHLS), the transfer of the medicolegal mortuaries from police to health and the creation of the Forensic Pathology Services, and in the establishment of the South African Health Products Regulatory Authority (SAHPRA). During COVID-19 he was responsible for managing the vaccination programme.

 He is now employed as Deputy Director General: National Health Insurance and is responsible for establishing the governance and administrative capabilities of the entity that will manage the Fund.

The Pholela Lecture 2025 took place at the CMSA 70th Anniversary Conference on 20 August 2025 at Future Africa Campus of the University of Pretoria. The topic of this year’s lecture was ”Health Systems Reform in South Africa: The indispensable role of medical specialists”