Ukhamba Initiative – NPK Clinical Psychologist

Nompumelelo Prudence Kubeka was trained as Traditional Healer and Clinical Psychologist . She has incorporates her work of being a traditional healer and a psychologist in her practice and adheres to the HPCSA scope of practice. In Ukhamba LweThemba Initiative that is under NPK Clinical Psychologist. She has been doing workshops, supervision and also lecturing mental health professionals in understanding patients from various indigenous cultures and traditions . These workshops, lectures , seminars and supervision incorporate the cultural, spiritual aspects and the western psychological perspective.

Her Master thesis The Psychological Perspective on Zulu Ancestral Calling: A Phenomenological Study (2016, UP, Pretoria), written while she was undergoing her process, is based on her understanding of and submission to the integration of between psychology and ancestral calling.

Her work includes teaching the value of indigenous healing, African rituals and culture to professionals in universities and academic hospitals, to promote an understanding of patients especially those with ancestral calling and fully fledge traditional healers. She has taught student psychologists, intern psychologist and psychologist from varies disciplines and also psychiatrists. ( Please see gallery for pictures of workshops)

uKhamba LweThemba Initiative( The Calabash of Hope)

Most professionals, skilled and experienced in treating a wide range of human conditions, are faced with difficulties to fully understand and empathize with the plight of their African patients. Basic insight and knowledge of the African tradition would greatly contribute to a meaningful and productive psychotherapy session. African patients may indeed present with problems that are foreign or “strange”, certainly unknown in western psychology and unintelligible to the uninformed western mind. These problems include, for example: ancestry, prayer, callings, rituals, protection and cursing, dreams, and witchcraft.

The purpose of the Ukhamba LweThemba Initiative is to introduce the audience to important foundational concepts of African culture, such as rituals, ancestral calling and traditional healing. This would be beneficial to mental health professionals and other caring individuals to be equipped with a basic knowledge of the ancestral world, since it is presenting problem that many African indigenous people struggle with when they seek psychotherapy or guidance. Many black African patients seek help from both the psychiatric clinics/hospitals, private practice and indigenous healers, creating an opportunity for these two worlds to merge.

Ukhamba LweThemba Initiative provides its teachings on the merging of the two worlds of African culture, traditions and the western psychology perspective through:

Workshops
Lectures
Seminars
Individual and Group supervision
Reading group(to be confirmed)

Please note that Ukhamba LweThemba Initiative is not doing any traditional healing consultations, however it is for teaching about African traditions and culture and merging it with the western psychology perspective. Please see the scope of practice for Clinical Psychologist below:

MY SCOPE OF PRACTICE OF CLINICAL PSYCHOLOGISTS

In addition to the scope of the profession as prescribed in the regulations, the following acts fall within the scope of practice of clinical psychologists:

(a) Assessing, diagnosing, and intervening in clients dealing with life challenges, particularly those with developmental and forms o f psychological distress and/or psychopathology; identifying psychopathology in psychiatric disorders, and psychological conditions; identifying, and diagnosing psychiatric disorders and psychological conditions; applying evidenced-based psychological interventions to people with psychological, and psychiatric conditions; referring clients to appropriate professionals for further assessment or intervention;

(b) Advising on the development of policies, based on various aspects of psychological theory and research; deSigning, managing, and evaluating programmes dealing with psychological, and psychiatriC problems;

(d) Conducting psychological practice, and research in accordance with the Ethical Rules of Conduct for Practitioners registered under the Health Professions Act, 1974; adhering to the scope of practice of clinical psychologists;

(e) Signing, managing, conducting, reporting on, and supervising psychological research; and

(f) Providing expert evidence and I or opinions.

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