The Rural Support Network (RSN), a group of UCT health-sciences students who aim to encourage their fellow students to work in rural communities, pulled out the big guns when they launched their Rural Health Awareness Week, from 23 to 26 April.

The guest speaker at the group's opening event was Malebona Matsoso (in picture), director-general of the national Department of Health. Along with fellow speaker Dr Reno Morar, deputy dean of the Faculty of Health Sciences, Matsoso had nothing but praise for the RSN, calling the students "agents of change".

The week, themed Heroes in Rural Health, was dedicated to success stories of working in rural areas.