In 2019, Dr Botha was one of the top four finalists in the BHF Titanium Young Achiever Awards, celebrating young professionals who have made a notable impact in the healthcare industry, as well as one of the five Top-35-under-35 category winners, winning the “Simplifying your success” award.
His doctoral research topic “A framework for price tariffs in the costing structures of South African private hospitals” is being used in a pilot study with the Namibian Association of Medical Aid Funds.
Dr Botha, who is the Senior Financial Manager at Nedbank Home Loans, says “This doctorate is the most significant achievement in my life to date and the external manifestation of my own inward transformation over the past two and a half years. There were many late nights, times of doubt and anxiety, but in all I would do it all over in a heartbeat due to the tremendous growth that I experienced personally.
“Completing my PhD at Nelson Mandela University was significant to me as it is the institution where I obtained my first degree and it was my first employer as an academic article clerk within the School of Accounting.
Dr Botha’s doctoral research recommends a unit-costing and reimbursement model combination that can be used to determine price tariffs in private hospitals in SA and will offer contextual information for the implementation of National Health Insurance.
The study addresses the concerns raised by the Competition Commission and the Department of Health regarding the high cost of private health care, to help make it more affordable and accessible to more people.
Dr Botha is currently busy with his MPhil in Futures Studies at the University of Stellenbosch Business School and “hopefully on its completion, I will start my second PhD in Futures Studies.
“At heart, I am an academic who loves to learn and study the latest trends in finance, health care and the global economy. As someone who is fascinated by the opportunities the future holds, I’m actively pursuing my development and qualifications as a professional futurist,” says Dr Botha.
“There is no way I would have been able to have done this study without my promoter Business Management’s Prof Miemie Struwig, and co-promoters, internationally acclaimed hospital sector and fertility subspecialist, Dr Paul Dalmeyer and the Business School’s Dr Heidi Janse van Rensburg. Dr Paul Dalmeyer has just received the South African Society of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists Distinguished Lifetime Achievement Award where he was recognised for his work achievements by his peers. Prof Struwig was also the promoter of Drs Dalmeyer and Janse van Rensburg’s doctoral degrees.
During his doctoral studies, Dr Botha also got married to Dr Oyomno-Botha who heads the Colorectal Surgery Unit at Steve Biko Academic Hospital in Pretoria and is also a fellow student, currently doing her PhD with the University of Pretoria.
