The Malta Independent on Sunday
Dr Susan Vosloo: Looking around for the truth
In Mauritius I had two very good South African friends both married to Mauritians. Melanie, with whom I am still in touch and Ann who unfortunately died years ago. We met around once a week with a couple of other ‘foreign’ wives, taking it in turn to host lunch. Only Melanie and I are still alive, of the old gang, the last of the Mohicans.
I visited South Africa, an impressive country, and stayed with Anne’s family on two occasions, on the way to Botswana. Bishop Desmond Tutu had come at least twice to give talks in Mauritius. These connections and others insured that the country and it’s people are close to my heart.
My dear friend Professor Jane Somerville who has done so much for so many people not only in Malta but around the world, introduced me to Dr Susan Vosloo via email before Covid but we only managed to meet a couple of months ago. I had been looking forward to hearing what this eminent woman had to say. Tall, blonde and willowy, she could so easily be a model. And there she is the first female cardiothoracic surgeon in South Africa, who performed her first heart transplant at the age of 33. She is warm, friendly with no pretensions whatsoever.
She first met Prof. Chris Barnard after his return from the US to SA in 1988. He had retired in 1984 as Head of Cardiothoracic surgery at University of Cape Town, Red Cross Children’s and Groote Schuur hospitals. They became great friends during the retirement phase of his life. Dr Vosloo assisted The Prof Chris Barnard Foundation with various Paediatric cardiac surgeries, her speciality. “It probably was our mutual interest in transplantation and congenital cardiac defects that formed the basis of a special friendship over his last decade. My professional life had been positively influenced by Professor Barnard. He set an example to many of us”, she recalls.
Dr Vosloo believes that despite her own achievements, inequalities in the medical field still exist. In an article for The Journal of Thoracic Disease published in 2021, she wrote: “It is a fact that, despite the worldwide increasing intake of women in medical schools, women are still grossly underrepresented in all medical and surgical specialties, and definitely in Cardiothoracic surgery, in both developed and developing countries. This is counter-productive towards meeting the escalating need for cardiac surgical care in Africa. However, the natural evolution over time of increasing numbers of females entering medical school and specializing in the field of surgery, is expected to continue despite multiple challenges encountered.”
Dr Vosloo had been in independent practice at Netcare’s Christiaan Barnard Memorial Hospital in Cape Town since 1991.
Her husband Dr Anton Ferreira is an anaesthetist, and they have twin daughters, Nina and Lila. They were born via surrogacy after her brother’s wife, Trudie Vosloo, offered to be their surrogate mother. “I went through a lot of failed fertility treatments and significant complications. Trudie, who had two sons, very generously offered to carry a baby. The twin girls were born in October 2000.” Dr Vosloo expressed utmost gratitude for this life-changing gesture.
Since the roll-out of Covid-19 vaccines several conspiracy theories evolved, including fears that the drug might contain harmful elements that may negatively affect people’s wellbeing rather than help them. Health experts have tried to debunk these theories as myths, but Dr Vosloo remains sceptical. She feels that since the precise ingredients of these injections have not been revealed, it may potentially be more dangerous to some individuals than the virus itself. Her family and herself have not taken the vaccine. “We so far politely declined. The anticipated risks were widely reported way before rollout started.”
In August 2021, the heart surgeon expressed views regarding the Covid-19 vaccination in a privately recorded video somehow publicly published on BitChute. In it she suggests that the vaccine is potentially more dangerous than the virus, which itself has been largely “mismanaged”, not by knowledgeable and appropriate medical professionals, but by
politicians, bureaucrats, academics and celebrities sharing clinical health advice. These views naturally came under fire. Medical “experts” were quick to condemn her claims as misleading and dangerous. In an interview with Health24, Dr Peter Benjamin from the People’s Health Movement of South Africa said that asking people not to take the vaccine against a disease that has killed many is dangerous. Dr Vosloo never “asked” people not to take the treatment. She shared publicly widely available information with friends and acquaintances, none of which were her patients. But Dr Vosloo believes there is undue pressure on society to comply with this. “The treatment is invasive. Information should include full disclosure of all the potential risks involved in taking it. All people do have a right to know this. The composition of the vaccine remains largely confidential. It’s not unlike the secret mixture of herbs and spices of Kentucky Fried Chicken,” she commented.
Moreover, as of late 2022 the Covid 19 vaccine is linked to a marked increase in excess deaths among children in Europe. The European Union has launched an investigation into the increase, which comes after the European Medicines Agency approved the Pfizer Covid-19 vaccine for children in May 2021.
She is not the only one who holds these views. There are many others in Australia, Canada, Europe, the USA, Britain… who are voicing similar views. A few days ago, a lawsuit filed by Robert F. Kennedy Jr., and multiple other plaintiffs, alleges the Trusted News
Initiative, a self-described “industry partnership” launched in March 2020 by several of the world’s largest news organisations, partnered with Big Tech firms to collectively censor online news including stories about Covid-19 and the 2020 US Presidential election that were not aligned with official narratives regarding those issues. All the plaintiffs allege they were censored, banned, de-platformed, shadow banned or otherwise penalized by the Big Tech firms partnering with the TNI, because the views and content they published were deemed “misinformation” or “disinformation”. This resulted in a major loss of visibility and revenue for the plaintiffs. There is an active conspiracy to censor Covid information.
Dr Vosloo mentions conflicts of interest. Particularly big Business and Pharma sponsorship and influence on the World Health Organisation and global regulatory bodies, where it may result in tremendous potential conflicts of interest between such presumed independent bodies and the pharmaceutical industry.
Pearl Kupe, a South African activist who often speaks at rallies about topical issues, exposed the gross hypocrisy of the Health Professions Council of South Africa (HPCSA) who are blindsiding the highly respected Dr Vosloo, in front of whom she is to appear on 24 February. “Constitutionally there is a requirement for informed consent. Medically you have a right to know what treatment you are receiving. But this is one of the issues the HPCSA has against her. They accuse her of being guilty of unprofessional conduct. In the video Dr Vosloo was asking for information. She is outstanding and has served her community for more than 40 years. She should be celebrated not treated like a criminal, inferring that by speaking her mind Dr Vosloo is somehow the criminal.”, says Pearl Kupe.
And as I write the BBC has just announced that Andrew Bridgen has been suspended as Tory MP for spreading misinformation about the Covid vaccine.
I happened to find out that on Table Mountain there is a plaque with Christiaan Barnard’s name, rendering him homage. But there is a second name on it and that is Dr Susan Vosloo.
On a happier note: “We bought a house in ‘lovely’ Malta in 2009 and we regularly come and spend time here,” she tells me. “It is more than probable that we may be retiring in Malta when the time comes.”
As a final shot she quotes George Orwell: “The further society drifts from the truth, the more it will hate those that speak it.”
No doubt we shall meet again when they next visit Malta. I look forward to it. She carries her enormous knowledge and experience with such grace.