I was born in 1958 in Potchefstroom, the daughter of a university lecturer father and a teacher mother.

Since childhood I have always endeavored to achieve my goals and objectives by striving to be the best. At school I enjoyed being involved in extra curricular activities – which included sport and music as well as maintaining a top academic performance. As part of Betty Pack’s Youth Chamber Orchestra, I toured Israel in December 1975, playing the cello.

I was elected as Head Girl at Menlo Park High School, Pretoria – where I completed Grade 12 with 6 distinctions in 1976 (I was also elected as Vice-Head Girl at Primary School.) My dedication to my studies was rewarded when I was awarded the Ernest Oppenheimer Memorial Trust Scholarship to study medicine at the University of Pretoria.

In 1983 I completed my MBChB degree. In 1989 I received the MMed (Derm) (Pret) degree, thus qualifying as a specialist dermatologist. After completing my internship and working at a large hospital, I was presented with the major challenge of taking over a large and busy dermatology practice in 1990.

Six years ago I bought a Molemax machine to scan moles. Being one of the first in South Africa to acquire such an apparatus, I regard myself as a true entrepreneur in the field.

I enjoy partaking in adventure sports. Together with my husband, I climbed Kilimanjaro (Uhuru Peak – highest in Africa) and cycled the 104km Argus Cycle Race.

Believing in a healthy life style and knowing he importance of making time for yourself, I have a wide variety of interests and activities:

• Scuba diving, golf, spinning, walking and cycling
• Photography (completed a course at National School of Photography)
• Piano lessons with the renowned Claudene van Breda every week and have done so for the past five years.
• I played the grade four Royal Schools examination in 2003 and I played grade five in 2006.
• I climbed Kilimanjaro (Uhuru Peak – highest in Africa) and cycled the 104km Argus Cycle Race.