ROAD MAP TO MMED (MASTERS OF MEDICINE)

Starting your MMed journey can feel overwhelming due to all the uncertainties. However, here are some clear steps to help you confidently begin your path.

Masters of Medicine
MMED in Emergency Medicine

Where to start

Topic selection

Choosing a topic for your Emergency Medicine MMed research as a first-year registrar can feel challenging, but starting with a subject that genuinely interests you is essential—it will help maintain your focus and motivation throughout the journey.
Focus on relevance and feasibility to guide your decision.
Look for common clinical issues or gaps in practice that you've encountered during your shifts, as these often lead to practical and impactful research topics.
Ensure your project is realistic and achievable within the two-year timeframe, especially given the demands of clinical work.
Early discussions with your supervisors can help refine your idea and provide guidance on keeping it manageable.

The following document outlines the MMed process - but read further for EM specific processes - 2025 MMed Info Pack

Supervisor selection

Selecting the right supervisor is a crucial step in your MMed research journey.
Ideally, choose someone who has a genuine interest or expertise in your chosen topic, as their insight and enthusiasm can greatly enhance your project.
You’ll be working closely with your supervisor throughout the research process.
If you're unsure about what to research, some consultants already have project ideas available—these can be a great starting point.
Speak to the registrar representatives for more information about which consultants offer available projects.
If you haven’t selected a supervisor by the end of Research Week, Prof Laher and Dr Beringer will assist in allocating one to you, ensuring you’re supported as you begin your project.

Research week

Research Week is a dedicated 4–5 day block (depending on the Wits Academic Day schedule) held at Wits Medical School, coordinated by Dr Beringer and Prof Laher. It's designed to give you protected time to focus on getting your MMed research off the ground, so make the most of this opportunity by coming well-prepared:

Bring your laptop – you’ll need it for writing, researching, and accessing resources.
Come with a few research topic ideas – even rough ones can help spark discussions and feedback.
Think about potential supervisors – having a few names in mind will help you make quicker progress.
If you've already started drafting a protocol, bring it along – you can get feedback and guidance to strengthen your work.
Use the time to ask consultants any questions you have about your topic, protocol design, feasibility, or ethical considerations.

This is one of the few dedicated periods in your registrar training for focused research development—take full advantage of it.

There are THREE compulsory courses that you need to complete during your first year as an MMed student:

Ethics course - https://elearning.trree.org/
Research Methodology
Basic Applied Statistical Methods using Stata and Statistica

Click on the following document for more details on how to apply for and complete the last two courses - Compulsory courses

FURTHER DOCUMENTS TO HELP WITH PROTOCOL DEVELOPMENT:

AI in research

Funding for Research

Guidelines on protocol development

SOCM MMed funding guidelines

Student-Supervisor Contract

Consent Template

Patient Information Leaflet Template

Vancouver reference guide

DRAG Submission

DRAG Submission Checklist (Departmental Research Advisory Group)

DRAG is a panel of Emergency Medicine consultants that reviews your MMed research protocol to assess its quality, feasibility, and readiness for ethics submission. Here's what you need to know and do to prepare for DRAG submission:

✅ Protocol should be submitted to DRAG within 6 months of Reg Time.

✅ Ensure your supervisor has approved your protocol before submission—this is essential.
✅ Only submit your protocol when it is complete and ready for review.
✅ Check the DRAG submission deadlines and meeting dates (found on the departmental site or via official communications).
- Submission deadlines are at least 10 days before the DRAG assessment meeting.
- No late submissions will be accepted.
✅ Submit your protocol to the Wits Postgraduate Office:
- Email: fhs-protocolsubmissions@wits.ac.za
- Submissions are made via email, ensure you email from your wits staff email
- Subject line format:

Name of school/department-student number-student name and surname-type of research

e.g. Emergency Medicine-1234567-Jane Doe-MMed

✅ Once submitted, the faculty will notify the DRAG committee that there is a candidate for the upcoming meeting.
✅ You must also CC email your protocol to the following individuals:
- Prof Feroza Motara – feroza.motara@wits.ac.za
- Prof Abdullah Laher – abdullahlaher@msn.com
- Zama Mavimbela – zamakholo.mavimbela@wits.ac.za

Make sure to double-check formatting and completeness before submission—DRAG feedback is a critical step toward getting your protocol approved for ethics.

Necessary Documents when submitting protocol

You will need a completed version of:

Your Protocol Document

Your completed student-supervisor contract

Protocol Cover Sheet

Recommendation for Appointment of Supervisor form

Plagiarism form

You will either get accepted or denied:

If accepted without corrections: you can go ahead and submit to ethics
If accepted pending corrections and supervisor approval: you will go and do the suggested corrections, send it back to your supervisors for approval then resubmit to post-graduate office. The documents to resubmit to the post-graduate office will be:

- Protocol with amendments

- List of amendments with reference to paragraph and page number within your protocol where the amendments were made

- Supervisor/HOD letter confirming amendments have been addressed - LETTER TEMPLATE

If denied/rejected: you will get feedback and need to resubmit for the next DRAG meeting

ONCE FULLY APPROVED BY DRAG AND POST-GRADUATE OFFICE, YOU WILL RECEIVE AN APPROVAL OF TITLE LETTER - DON'T LOSE IT

Ethics Submission / Approval

Ethics Submission Summary (Wits MMed Research – HREC Medical)

Visit: https://www.wits.ac.za/research/researcher-support/research-ethics/ethics-committees/ for more information

All research involving human participants under the University of the Witwatersrand must receive ethics clearance. For students or staff within the Faculty of Health Sciences, this means submitting an application to the Human Research Ethics Committee (Medical), especially if the research is conducted at a medical facility (hospital, clinic, etc.), regardless of whether medical professionals are directly involved.

For most MMed projects, you will need to complete the Full Application Form, which applies to higher degree research involving clinical procedures, surveys, interviews, and other prospective health-related activities. This form does not apply to case studies, retrospective reviews, or studies using de-identified data.

Submission Process:

Applications must be submitted online via the Wits Ethics Management System (EMS): https://www.witsethics.co.za/Login.aspx.
Include your full protocol, DRAG clearance letter (Approval of Title), site permission letters, appendices (data collection forms and patient consents), and all supporting documentation.
Submissions are reviewed during monthly HREC (Medical) committee meetings. Be sure to consult the updated submission and meeting dates.
Expedited application categories (e.g. retrospective reviews, case studies) must be submitted via email to: HREC-Medical.ResearchOffice@wits.ac.za. No hard copies are needed.
You will need to submit your ethics course certificate as well as your supervisor's ethics course certificates - NOTE: these courses expire after 3 years. Your supervisor will need an up-to-date course certificate that does not expire during the entire duration of YOUR MMed.
You will want your ethics approval to be accepted on the first try to avoid unnecessary delays: see this document on common mistakes to avoid: Avoid these mistakes - Ethics Submission

For templates, checklists, and further guidance, refer to the Wits Ethics portal. Always confirm the correct form and process before submission to avoid delays.

Application Form

HREC Ethics Checklist Form

Submission deadlines 2025

CEO Permission/ Approval

If you have chosen a research method that requires permission from
CEOs or Research Committees from respective hospitals, you can use this as a guide.

The site approvals will be conditional on full ethics approval from the university. These approvals are then resubmitted to the HREC to obtain FULL ETHICS APPROVAL.

CHBAH CEO Permission

You will need to complete this cover sheet, and accompanying documents.

Hand it into Patience Daza at the Psychiatry department, Block 85. patience.daza@gauteng.gov.za

011 933 0807

You will need to register your protocol on the National Health Research Database (NHRD) website https://nhrd.health.gov.za/ to get a reference number. The actual NHRD number will take a while and they accept the reference number. The provisional number/certificate is sufficient and you can use a screenshot as proof.

CMJAH CEO Permission

You will need to complete the application form via this link.

Then you will need to upload your documents via this link.

For any further enquiries, you can email cmjahresearch@gauteng.gov.za

HJH CEO Permission

You must complete this form

Then email the completed form, your protocol, ethics approval (if you have it) and NHRD reference number to Hlamalani Shibodzo.

Hlamalani.Shibodzo@gauteng.gov.za

Tambo Memorial CEO Permission

Email your protocol, a cover letter with your name, supervisor, title etc (as for CHBAH), NHRD, HoD permission and provisional ethics clearance to Johanna Storm.

Johanna.Storm2@gauteng.gov.za

Thelle Mogerane CEO Permission

Email your protocol, a cover letter with your name, supervisor, title etc (as for CHBAH), NHRD, HoD permission and provisional ethics clearance to Thandiwe Mabizela

Thandiwe.Mabizela@gauteng.gov.za

Wits Health Science Campus

If conducting research on Wits campus and Registrars, undergraduate students or staff are the intended participants, You will need to get ethics approval from the deputy registrar. This can only be done once FULL ETHICS APPROVAL HAS BEEN RECEIVED.

Document on how to obtain deputy registrar approval

Data Collection

Only once you have received ethics approval, can you begin data collection for your MMed research. It's essential to follow the approved protocol closely, including any timelines, methods, and site permissions outlined in your ethics submission. Keep your data secure, de-identified where applicable, and ensure informed consent is obtained if required. Maintain accurate records throughout, as these will be crucial for your analysis and eventual write-up. Regular check-ins with your supervisor during this phase can help keep you on track and address any challenges early.

Need to change your study title or supervisor midway ?

If you need to change the title of your MMed research project after initial submission, you must notify the Wits Postgraduate Office. Send an email to Kgomotso Tlala at Kgomotso.Tlala@wits.ac.za requesting the title change. You will also need to complete the official title change document provided below and submit it along with your request. Be sure to include your student number, original title, proposed new title, and supervisor approval.

Change of title document to complete

Change of supervisor document to complete

WRITING UP YOUR FINAL MMED

This is often where we procrastinate the most. It is hard to get started on the final write up and to know how to discuss and summarise your data.

The best place to start is using the introduction/background of your protocol and summarising it to an appropriate word count. Then look at the methods and change it all to past tense. Often it all flows from there.

It is important to aim for submission in a journal format and/or submit for publication.

You will need to agree on a suitable journal with your supervisors and then follow that journal's word count and publication specifications. Do this from the beginning so you have a realistic word count from the beginning.

List of approved journals

Writing Style Guide

Structure of permissible submission formats

SUBMITTING YOUR FINAL MMED

Your MMed will need to be submitted in 1 of 3 possible formats.

Full thesis - aka a Monograph - Needs to be marked
Journal Format - Needs to be marked - RECOMMENDED
As a publication in lieu of a research report - Once published, does not need further marking - RECOMMENDED

Therefore you can submit via 2 possible pathways - either for marking or as a publication.