Dr. Sithembile Ncube

Dr. Sithembile Ncube is a specialist obstetrician and gynaecologist at Parirenyatwa Group of Hospitals in Harare, Zimbabwe's largest public tertiary hospital and the country's principal academic medical centre. A Fellow of the College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists of South Africa (FCOG SA) as well as a holder of the University of Zimbabwe's MMed in Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Dr. Ncube brings dual training pedigrees that span both the Zimbabwean academic medical tradition and the rigorous South African post-graduate specialist examination pathway.

Over a 16-year career at Parirenyatwa, Dr. Ncube has developed particular expertise in gynaecological oncology and maternal-fetal medicine — two areas of especially high clinical need at Zimbabwe's national hospital, where cervical and endometrial cancer presentations are common and where high-risk obstetric cases are referred from provincial hospitals across the country. She is one of a small number of Zimbabwean gynaecologists with formal training in both advanced laparoscopic surgery and radical gynaecological cancer surgery.

A native Ndebele speaker from Matabeleland, Dr. Ncube consults in English, Ndebele, and Shona, making her uniquely accessible to patients from all of Zimbabwe's major language communities. This trilingual capacity is particularly valued at Parirenyatwa, which receives patients from every province including Matabeleland North and South where Ndebele is the primary language.

Dr. Ncube completed her undergraduate medical education at the University of Zimbabwe College of Health Sciences, graduating with her MBChB. She pursued her post-graduate specialist training through the University of Zimbabwe's MMed programme in Obstetrics and Gynaecology, undertaking her residency at Parirenyatwa Group of Hospitals and the Sally Mugabe Central Hospital in Harare. Her MMed training provided comprehensive exposure to high-volume obstetrics, emergency gynaecological surgery, gynaecological oncology, and reproductive medicine.

Following her MMed, Dr. Ncube undertook advanced post-fellowship training in South Africa, where she prepared for and sat the Fellowship examination of the College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists of South Africa (FCOG SA), achieving fellowship status — a distinction that represents one of the highest post-graduate qualifications in obstetrics and gynaecology in sub-Saharan Africa. She has completed laparoscopic surgery skills training through the Southern African Society of Gynaecological Endoscopy (SASGE) and has attended gynaecological oncology workshops at the University of Cape Town and Chris Hani Baragwanath Academic Hospital.

Dr. Ncube's dual expertise in gynaecological oncology and maternal-fetal medicine positions her as one of Zimbabwe's most comprehensively trained obstetricians and gynaecologists. In gynaecological oncology, she performs radical hysterectomy (Wertheim's procedure) for cervical cancer, total abdominal hysterectomy and staging surgery for endometrial cancer, and surgical staging and debulking for ovarian cancer. She performs colposcopy and LLETZ (large loop excision of the transformation zone) for the management of cervical pre-cancer — a critical service in Zimbabwe, where cervical cancer is among the most common cancers in women. She uses diagnostic and operative laparoscopy for both oncological and benign gynaecological conditions including endometriosis and adnexal pathology.

In obstetrics, Dr. Ncube manages high-risk pregnancies including pre-eclampsia, multiple pregnancy, fetal growth restriction, and HIV in pregnancy under Zambia's Prevention of Mother-to-Child Transmission (PMTCT) protocol. She performs obstetric ultrasound and fetal anomaly scanning and manages major obstetric haemorrhage including placenta praevia and placenta accreta. Her operative obstetric skills include all categories of caesarean section, instrumental delivery, and management of complex postpartum haemorrhage including uterine compression sutures and, where necessary, peripartum hysterectomy.

Dr. Ncube has contributed to clinical research at Parirenyatwa Group of Hospitals, including outcome studies on cervical cancer management and analyses of obstetric near-miss events in the Zimbabwean public hospital setting. Her research interests align with Zimbabwe's highest-burden gynaecological conditions, particularly cervical cancer — which disproportionately affects younger women in Zimbabwe due to the compounding effect of high HIV prevalence — and the management of major obstetric haemorrhage. She has presented findings at the Zimbabwe Society of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists annual conference and has engaged with the African Organisation for Research and Training in Cancer (AORTIC) network for gynaecological cancer research in Africa.

Parirenyatwa Group of Hospitals serves as a regional referral destination for patients from Zambia, Malawi, Mozambique, and Botswana who travel to Harare for specialist obstetric and gynaecological care. Dr. Ncube's expertise in gynaecological oncology makes her particularly sought after by patients from the wider region for second opinions and surgical consultations related to cervical, endometrial, and ovarian cancer. She also provides specialist consultations for members of the Zimbabwean diaspora — particularly those in the United Kingdom, South Africa, and Australia — who visit Harare during pregnancy or for planned gynaecological procedures.

Her trilingual fluency in English, Ndebele, and Shona enables her to serve patients from all of Zimbabwe's major language communities without interpreter support, which is especially valued by patients from Matabeleland seeking specialist care in Harare. International patients can arrange appointments through the Parirenyatwa outpatient gynaecology clinic, and the hospital can facilitate prioritised scheduling for patients travelling from outside Zimbabwe.

Dr. Ncube's Fellowship of the College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists of South Africa (FCOG SA) represents a major professional achievement and is one of the most distinguished post-graduate qualifications in obstetrics and gynaecology available in sub-Saharan Africa. She has received institutional recognition from Parirenyatwa Group of Hospitals for her contribution to the hospital's gynaecological oncology services and has been commended by the Zimbabwe Society of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists for her involvement in cervical cancer awareness and prevention initiatives. She is regarded by her colleagues as an outstanding clinical gynaecologist whose trilingual skills and dual training background make her an exceptional asset to Zimbabwe's specialist medical workforce.