24 Aug 2026: ISH members were pleased to participate in the Southern African Hypertension Society Congress which took place from 14-16 August 2026 in Sandton, South Africa.

An ISH New Investigator Committee session explored how early-career researchers can advance their careers. Chaired by ISH members Neusa Jessen and Vernice Paterson, the session included a presentation from Neusa on identifying career opportunities, and the positive impact ISH has had on her own career development.

Neusa also spoke at the Congress about the importance and future potential of remote hypertension care, as well as implementation science and health systems research.

ISH Mentorship and Training Committee Chair Lebo Gafane-Matemane chaired the SAHS Congress Scientific Committee and was elected as SAHS Treasurer at the Congress. She presented on task sharing, and spoke about the need for scalable and sustainable community-based programmes to improve hypertension management in Africa.

ISH Africa Regional Advisory Group member Ruan Kruger outlined in a session what is new in the recently published ISH/PASCAR hypertension guidelines for Africa.

And in the same session, ISH Council member and SAHS President Erika Jones spoke about the importance of ensuring that the guidelines are presented in a simple and accessible way in primary health care settings and for non-physician healthcare workers. She also highlighted the cost savings from effective implementation of the guidelines.

ISH members Neusa Jessen and Lebo Gafane-Matemane at the Southern African Hypertension Society Congress 2026