Psychiatrist

Location: Rivonia and Online

• Adolescents therapy
• Adults therapy
• Family therapy
• Group therapies and/or workshops
• Maternal mental health
• Trauma and related disorders
• Mood and anxiety disorders
• Psychotic disorders
• Dual diagnosis with substance use disorders

“Start with the why” Simon Sinek

At a young age, there was a family member who suffered from a chronic condition. I took great pride in being of assistance in any small way I could as an overzealous little girl. Being able to bring a smile to this family member in their condition, was very fulfilling. Medicine was thus an inspired vocation for me as it allows me to bring smiles to people where there is none.

As I was traversing through my community service years, I was drawn to mental health patients as they seemingly needed more time, patience and understanding in the whirlwind that is the public health system. It was my crucible moment on how I can help bring a smile to patients just as I had all those years back with that family member in the rolling hills of Kwazulu-Natal.

I enjoy investing time into the person, seeing them beyond their diagnosis and offering their families support. Psychiatry is thus a perfect fit as I always want to touch, change and improve lives with every interaction I have with individuals. It allows me more contact with the patient and tickles my intrigue to also understand the system from which they stem from to get a more holistic view of them.

Psychiatry affords me the space to fully engage with and invest more time in individuals. This in an attempt and hope to not just meet them at their need but also equip them for the future. I am passionate about people and being a part of the journey to improve their quality of life. 

I completed my specialist training at the University of the Witwatersrand. I am currently working as a specialist psychiatrist at The Couch on a full time basis.

Psychiatrist
Practice Number: 0985813

Location: Rivonia and Online

• Adult Psychiatry
• Depressive and Anxiety Disorders
• Personality Disorders
• Women’s Mental health
• Psychotic Disorders
• Dual Diagnostic and Substance Use Disorders

“My desire to be a physician had a lot to do with that sense of medicine as a ministry of healing, not just a science…” Abraham Verghese

My love for psychiatry began serendipitously! After completing my medical degree at the University of Cape Town, and two subsequent years as an intern at Dr George Mukhari Hospital, (Ga Rankuwa), during my community service year at Charlotte Maxeke Hospital in Johannesburg, I was assigned to psychiatry for the latter half of the year. My hands-on experience in managing cases both individually and with a multidisciplinary team birthed in me an insatiable passion and fascination for the field. I was awestruck by the uniqueness and complexities of our individual minds, and my decision to jump in head first from then onwards has been one I have not looked back on.

I spent a further six months as a medical officer at Chris Hani Baragwanath Hospital, and thereafter commenced my specialist training with the University of Witwatersrand, where I gained invaluable experience in Acute Psychiatry on an inpatient and outpatient basis, community psychiatry, consult liaison psychiatry, child psychiatry, forensic psychiatry within numerous facilities such as Tara Hospital, Sterkfontein Hospital, Helen Joseph Hospital, Charlotte Maxeke Academic Hospital, and numerous community clinics in the Johannesburg metro, East Rand, West Rand and Sedibeng areas. I am now practicing as a specialist psychiatrist at Charlotte Maxeke Hospital, in an attempt to give back to where my journey began.

It has been a true privilege and a fascinating experience exploring the biological bases behind numerous mental health conditions. Over the years I have grown immensely to confidently and unapologetically hold my own as a mental health advocate. I believe that being a psychiatrist has been a calling from God over my life, and I pride myself in being dedicated to the journey I embark on with every patient that enters my consultation room. I truly believe that there is no health without mental health!

I am thrilled to have joined The Couch on a part-time basis to build on this journey.

Dr Annette Antwi-Anyimadu

My Story

no mud. no lotus.

I chose medicine (or did it choose me?) to have the opportunity to ease suffering, to heal and hopefully leave at least one person better than I had found them.  My love for psychiatry began as a fifth year medical student at the University of Cape Town and has grown in intensity and depth with the passing years.  I was fascinated by the delicate relationship between neuroscience and the beautiful intricacies of what made every person unique.

During my internship at Groote Schuur Hospital it became clear that my path lay in psychiatry. My passion was not only to try to cure, but more to improve the quality of life of those I am able to care for.  I was never one for adrenaline and brief contact with patients, I was always left wanting to know more and wondered about patients long after they had left my care.  After my community service I embarked on my journey in psychiatry.  I worked as a medical officer in psychiatry for 18 months before starting my specialist training at the University of the Witwatersrand from 2014-2018. 

I currently have the privilege of working at Chris Hani Baragwanath Hospital as a specialist psychiatrist.  My duties include consultation liaison psychiatry, emergency psychiatry, managing the outpatient care of patients, collaboration with multidisciplinary teams to provide holistic care, patient-centred care, managing services and outreach and actively participating in the academic training of medical students and training psychiatrists.

Psychiatry affords me the space to truly listen, to provide empathic holistic care and to improve quality of life.  It is a privileged journey and one that I am truly dedicated to. 

My special interests include:

• Early intervention psychiatry.
• Maternal mental health.
• Trauma and related disorders.
• Mood and anxiety disorders.
• Personality disorders.
• Caring for those with comorbid medical diagnoses.
• Dual diagnosis with substance use disorders.