Professor Ntombifikile Mtshali is a recognised Nurse leader, academic and researcher. She holds a PhD from the University of KwaZulu-Natal. She has extensive leadership experience in higher education. Prior to the current position she served as the Head of the Nursing Department at the University of KwaZulu-Natal (UKZN), Director of the World Health Organisation Collaborating Centre (WHOCC) for Nursing and Midwifery at UKZN, Dean of Teaching and Learning in the College of Health at UKZN, Senior Manager Education and Training at SANC, lecturer and associate professor at UKZN.