Local Speakers
Dr Neville Auths
Dr Neville Auths is a specialist neurologist and senior lecturer who currently serves as head of the clinical unit in Neurology at Universitas Hospital Bloemfontein. With nearly two decades of clinical experience, he manages a wide spectrum of neurological conditions and plays a key role in the training of registrars, medical students, and allied health professionals. His clinical interests include multiple sclerosis, dementia, spasticity management and neurophysiological studies. Dr Auths has extensive expertise in Botulinum toxin therapy for both adult and paediatric spasticity and provides outreach neurological services to local regional hospitals, including 3 Military Hospital and Pelonomi Hospital. He is also a valued contributor to national teaching programmes and has presented at numerous professional meetings. In addition to his clinical and teaching responsibilities, he is actively involved in research supervision and serves on multiple academic and institutional committees. He has attended a wide range of international neurology and neurorehabilitation conferences. In his spare time, he enjoys the piano, running and spending time with his wife and children.
Dr James Butler
Dr Butler practices as a neurologist in Mediclinic Constantiaberg, with an interest in epilepsy. He is affiliated to the Department of Neurology at UCT and Stellenbosch. He is privileged to be practising as a neurologist and has some research interests as well."
Dr Irshad Siddi Ganie
Dr. Irshad Faizal Siddi Ganie is a South African specialist neurologist in independent practice, based in Durban, KwaZulu-Natal. He obtained his MBChB from the Nelson R Mandela School of Medicine, University of KwaZulu-Natal, and completed his specialist neurology training at Grey’s Hospital and Inkosi Albert Luthuli Central Hospital. He is a Fellow of the College of Neurology of South Africa and has been in specialist practice since 2010. Dr. Ganie holds consulting appointments at Life Mount Edgecombe Hospital, Busamed Gateway Private Hospital, and Netcare Umhlanga Hospital. He has been actively involved in the development of hospital-based neurological services, including the establishment of a stroke programme at Life Mount Edgecombe Hospital, and has served as Chairperson of the Medical Advisory Committee at the same institution. His clinical and academic interests include headache disorders, secondary headache syndromes, neuro-infectious disease, stroke, and the interface between neurology and systemic medical conditions. He has contributed to international academic forums, including authorship of a poster presented at the International Headache Society meeting in 2015 on Essential Thrombocythaemia with JAK2 Mutation and its Relationship to Benign Intracranial Hypertension as a Cause of Secondary Headache, published in Cephalalgia. He is a member of the Neurological Association of South Africa and the International Headache Society, and regularly contributes to continuing medical education as well as community and media-based neurological education.
Dr Shaheed Gora
Dr. Shaheed Gora is a specialist neurologist with extensive clinical experience. He earned his MBBCh from the University of the Witwatersrand in 2005. He completed his Neurology Fellowship in 2012. Dr. Gora has been serving as a Neurology Consultant at Netcare Milpark Hospital since 2015, providing expert care in inpatient, outpatient, and neurocritical settings. As part of his intention to stay abreast of industry advancements, Dr Gora completed his Ai certification from Stanford.
Prof Dali Magazi
Convenor
Prof Dali Magazi is the HOD at Sefako Makgatho Health Sciences University. He is the convener of the present conference (NASA 2026). His educational background is: MBBCh (Wits); MMED (Neuro)UP; FCP (Neuro)SA; PhD (SMU); FRCP (London). He is a recipient of numerous best lecturer awards and has to date, trained over 20 neurologists. He sits in various committees including the South African Civil Aviation’s Authority (SACAA).
Dr Sibuso Ndlovu
Dr. Sibu Ndlovu is a diagnostic radiologist with over a decade of experience in private practice at Maine Radiology in Pretoria. He has developed a special interest in neurological imaging, with a particular focus on paediatric neuroradiology. Medico-legal casework forms a substantial part of his practice. He is currently pursuing the European Diploma in both Neuroradiology and Head & Neck Radiology. He has previously presented at the Kenyan Society of Radiology annual meeting.
Prof Lebogang Phahladira
Lebogang Phahladira is an NRF-rated Associate Professor and Specialist Psychiatrist in the Department of Psychiatry at Stellenbosch University and Lentegeur Hospital. His portfolio includes patient-facing clinical work, teaching, research and a wide range of administrative responsibilities. He is a core member of the Psychosis Research Program at Stellenbosch University, a unit with over two decades of psychosis research expertise with a particular focus on “real-world” treatment outcomes in resource-constrained settings. He holds various leadership positions and is a recipient of numerous awards and grants.
Dr Johan Smuts
Dr Smuts is a neurologist currently working in a private practice in Pretoria. He completed his under graduate training as well as his specialization at the University of Pretoria (1984 and 1993). He also did post graduate studies in EMG with Dr Joe Jabre in Boston in the USA during 1994. In 2012 he completed a law degree at the University of South Africa. Dr. Smuts is a member of the South African Neurology Society. He also is a past president of Pain SA. He has written several papers and chapters in books. Also, he participated in more than many clinical trials as principal investigator or sub investigator. He presented papers at more than 25 local and international congresses. Current interests are electromyography, headache, neurological aspects of chronic pain and neurological aspects of consciousness.
Dr Aayesha Soni
(MBBCh (Wits); DipPEC (SA); DA (SA); FcNeurol (SA); MMed (UCT); Fellowship (Epilepsy & EEG, Western Univ., Canada))
Aayesha Soni completed her undergraduate medical degree at the University of Witwatersrand (2014) in South Africa, for which she was a recipient of the prestigious Vice Chancellor's Scholarship for the duration of her studies. She then completed her Neurology registrar training at the University of Cape Town and became a fellow of the College of Neurology, South Africa in 2023, followed by completing the Richard S. McLachlan Clinical Fellowship in Epileptology at the London Health Sciences Center in Ontario, Canada in 2025, where she was the recipient of the IFCN Education Fellowship Award (2024/5). Her interest in research is evidenced by 23 peer-reviewed publications, and a completed Master of Medicine in Neurology (2022) through the University of Cape Town. Aayesha also has a keen interest in healthcare advocacy and human rights, which has earned her recognition as a recipient of a number of awards including the Emerging Star Award at the South African Health Excellence Awards (2025), American Academy of Neurology International Scholarship Award (2024) and Advocate at the Palatucci Advocacy Leadership Forum (2025), as well as being named as 100 Young Mandelas of the Future (Leadership Category; 2018) and Mail and Guardian’s Top 200 Young South Africans (Health Category; 2017).
Prof Lawrence Tucker
After completing a laboratory-based, neuroscience PhD in Cambridge as a young doctor in 1993, Lawrence returned to specialise as a clinical neurologist Cape Town He now heads neurology at Groote Schuur Hospital and the University of Cape Town’s Neuroscience Institute. He is also past president of the College of Neurologists of South Africa and the Neurological Association of South Africa; and he is presently acting president and president-elect of the African Academy of Neurology. He also chairs and sits on boards and committees of various national and international, professional, and academic neurological bodies. He is a general neurologist with an interest in epilepsy, epilepsy-surgery and neurophysiology, but his passions lie in the advancement of neurological education, training, clinical practice and advocacy, especially in Africa.
Dr Dan Zaharie
Dr Dan Zaharie has been a qualified anatomical and forensic pathologist for more than two decades, with extensive experience in both in vivo and post-mortem pathology. He qualified as a neuropathologist in 2013 – currently the only neuropathologist in South Africa and is employed jointly by the National Health Laboratory Services (NHLS) and the University of Stellenbosch (US), South Africa. Dan also holds appointments as senior lecturer in Neuroscience module and the Forensic Medicine department of the Faculty of Health Sciences, US. He has recently completed his PhD “New insights in the pathogenesis of granulomatous inflammation in neurotuberculosis” (Vrije University of Amsterdam and University of Stellenbosch). He is passionate about all aspects of neuropathology and sharing his knowledge with students (both pre- and post-graduate) and healthcare colleagues in order to improve the life of patients. Dan is academically active and enjoys research. During his post-graduate studies, he collaborated with colleagues at Brigham and Women's hospital, Boston (USA), with specific work on foetal alcohol syndrome and sudden infant death syndrome. Dan has published in many peer-reviewed journals, and has presented at local and international congresses. Dan is a Fellow of the European Confederation of Neuropathological Societies. He is a recipient of National Research Foundation (Desmond Tutu Foundation) fund.