THE DEPARTMENT OF COMMUNITY MEDICINE
Dr Pugie Chimberengwa - Chairperson
Chairperson’s Welcome Message
The department of Community Medicine is one of the academic departments within the faculty if Medicine.
Aims of the department: To be a leader in coordinating evidence-based medicine through research in the Faculty of Medicine. We will do this through teaching Community Medicine to fourth year medical students, train postgraduate doctors in Family Medicine, mentoring PhD students in Public Health medicine and collaborative research with other departments, faculties and universities.
Chairperson’s Profile
Pugie Chimberengwa was appointed as the chairperson of the Department of Community Medicine in February 2025. Before then he was a Senior Lecturer in the department. Pugie is a medical doctor who qualified with degrees in Medicine and Surgery from the University of Zimbabwe and a master’s in public health from the same institution. He is a holder of PhD in Public Health Medicine from the University of Kwa-Zulu Natal. He has extensive clinical and health management experience having worked in the Ministry of Health and Child Care. He worked a all levels of care overseeing implementation of primary health case (as a District Medical Officer), curative care (as Medical Superintendent Provincial Hospital) as well as a Provincial Medical Director. He also worked with various partners that that support the Ministry of Health-on-Health Systems Strengthening. He is an avid researcher, publisher and reviewer in several peer reviewer journals; hence he teaches epidemiology and research methods.
Contact details: pugie.chimberengwa@nust.ac.zw
About The Department
The Department of Community Medicine teaches principles of primary health care, nutrition, environmental and occupational health and safety, biostatistics and epidemiology, research methodology, maternal and child health care, health education and promotion, basic concepts and principles of public health and global health, communicable and non-communicable diseases as well as patient safety. Students are exposed to community medicine and primary health care through attachments to rural and urban primary health care facilities. They are attached to provincial, district, and mission hospitals to appreciate community medicine in rural settings. Additionally, they are connected to local, urban council clinics and infectious disease hospitals to gain a critical understanding of the management and control of TB, HIV, and other infectious diseases.
Our Department in Numbers
Undergraduate programmes
1. MBBS
MBBS
MMed Family Medicine Entry Requirements
Candidates for the MMed Degree in Family Medicine programme may be accepted if they satisfy the General Academic Regulations for acceptance to NUST and in addition:
- Hold an undergraduate degree in Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery (MBBS) or equivalent.
- Have completed a General Medical Education (GME) post internship.
- Have a current registration and practicing certificate with the Medical and Dental Practitioners Council of Zimbabwe (MDPCZ).
Staff Profiles
MBChB, Msc Clin. Epi,
HEALZ Fellow (UZCHS),
Dip HIV Management (CMSA)
Phone:+263292203336-8, Mobile: 263774111571
Email: hilary.gunguwo@nust.ac.zw