We are h.u.m.a.n
A network of specialists dedicated to providing our patients with the quality of individual care and attention they deserve.Each of our proudly h.u.m.a.n members has been recognised and selected by the group for the unique skills and expertise they bring as a leader in their respective field and for their commitment to delivering the level of service every patient deserves and to guide them on their personal medical journey.
Why h.u.m.a.n?
Our name is a testament to our values and how we operate. It’s a commitment to treat every patient as an individual, remembering that we too are humble, human beings and to uplift our profession in the process.
H
Honour
We will work with honour and integrity for our profession, our colleagues and our patients.
U
Understand
We will treat our patients with understanding and patience for their individual needs and in turn ensure that they have a clear understanding of what’s going on with their health so that they can look after it.
M
Master
We are committed to mastering our craft by constantly learning and sharing our knowledge with one another to provide our patients with the best care.
A
Advise
N
Network
“We believe in working with our patients to counter fear and build trust by creating a healthcare system with excellence in treatment and care at its core – one that prioritizes our patients unique needs and respects their human dignity.”
Dr. Maria Theologides, Founder, h.u.m.a.n
Message from the founder
Over the past 20 years I had watched as first my grandmother and then her 6 sisters (ranging from 30 to 60 years old) were diagnosed with metastatic breast cancer. As a family we tried to help them navigate the medical system from diagnosis to losing them one at a time, we experienced firsthand the disconnect between what patients need and what the healthcare system in their fragmented sectors provided.
I helplessly stood by, stunned by barbaric breast removals and endless hours spent in chemo and radio therapy, I watched each strong woman wilt into a broken soul – a wasted loss of hope and life. I knew that out there were amazing doctors who did care, who yearned to make a difference in their patients’ lives – but they were lost on sole paths, navigating through protocols and red tape. I became obsessed and I committed to transforming the healthcare system by bringing together professionals who not only practice excellent medicine/dentistry but who do so with care and compassion.
But as a Paediatric Specialist with Functional Medicine training, I’ve had the great privilege of working with and learning from so many wonderful health professionals over the last few years. There are so many people who went into medicine for the right reasons who are struggling against a broken healthcare system. This is our effort to join together and call for a new professionalism, to counter fear and rebuild trust. It is our hope that our patients will join us in building a better healthcare system that believes in excellence both in treatment and care, one that prioritizes patient values and respects human dignity.
Dr. Maria Theologides
– BDS (Wits)
– BSc HON – Paediatrics (Stellenbosch)
– PDD – Paediatrics (Stellenbosch)
– MSc – Paediatrics (Stellenbosch)
The Hippocratic Oath
Every medical professional must uphold the Hippocratic Oath – a promise to operate with the highest moral standards and always do everything possible to help their patients.
I will respect the hard-won scientific gains of those dentists and physicians in whose steps I walk, and gladly share such knowledge as is mine with those who are to follow.
I will apply, for the benefit of the sick, all measures which are required, avoiding those twin traps of overtreatment and therapeutic nihilism.
I will remember that there is art to dentistry and medicine as well as science, and that warmth, sympathy, and understanding may outweigh the surgeon’s knife, the dentist’s drill or the chemist’s drugs.
I will prevent disease whenever I can, for prevention is preferable to cure.
I will not be ashamed to say “I know not”, nor will I fail to call in my colleagues when the skills of another are needed for a patient’s recovery.
I will respect the privacy of my patients, for their problems are not disclosed to me that the world may know. Most especially must I tread with care in matters of life and death. If it is given me to save a life, all thanks. But it may also be within my power to take a life; this awesome responsibility must be faced with great humbleness and awareness of my own frailty. Above all, I must not play at God.
I will remember that I remain a member of society, with special obligations to all my fellow human beings, those sound of mind and body as well as the infirm.
I will remember that I do not treat a cavity, a cancerous growth, but a sick human being, whose illness may affect the person’s family and economic stability. My responsibility includes these related problems, if I am to care adequately for the sick.
If I do not violate this oath, may I enjoy life and art, respected while I live and remembered with affection thereafter. May I always act so as to preserve the finest traditions of my calling and may I long experience the joy of healing those who seek my help.
