Dr Patience Chinyenze

Lecturer

School of Health, Science and Wellbeing

I practiced as a social worker for ten years and the roles that I undertook entailed providing counselling services to sexually abused children and their families, running community outreach programs on child sexual abuse and training community focal persons as well as giving talks on risk factors, indicators, effects and management of child sexual abuse. I have also worked with orphaned and vulnerable children and their families providing psychosocial support to enhance their social functioning in the midst of difficult circumstances. The other role that I played as a social worker, involved providing psychosocial support to terminally ill patients, grief and bereavement counselling to clients and provision of palliative care training to caregivers and health professionals at national and regional levels.

Prior to joining Staffordshire University, I worked at two universities in Zimbabwe.  I worked as a lecturer and Social work Department Coordinator at the Women’s University in Africa, Zimbabwe. I also worked as a lecturer at the Midlands State University, School of Social work, Zimbabwe.   I have passion for provision of clinical social work services to individuals, groups and families in need. I am the founder and board member of the Safe Space Trust, a non-profit making organisation which is based in Harare- Zimbabwe that provides psychosocial support services to individuals, groups and families.

Professional memberships and activities
  • Social Work England
  • Council of Social Workers Zimbabwe

Academic qualifications
  • PhD (Social work) University of the Witwatersrand (South Africa).
  • Master of Social work Degree- University of Zimbabwe
  • Bachelor of Social Sciences (Social work) degree – University of Fort Hare (South Africa).

Expertise

Clinical social work inclusive of the following:

  • Provision of psychosocial support to orphaned and vulnerable children and their families and children in residential care.
  • Provision of counselling services to sexually abused children, their families and people presenting with various interpersonal and intrapsychic issues.
  • Giving talks on social work-related topics.
  • Grief and bereavement counselling.
  • Palliative care
  • Family Systems and Relationships Therapy
  • Teaching social work at higher education institutes.
  • Management of Community Outreach programmes.

Research interests
  • Clinical social work Issues.
  • Children’s and Families Issues
  • Trauma
  • The Elderly
  • Psychosocial issues linked to Endocrinology

Enterprise and commercial interests
  • Clinical social work inclusive of the following: 
    • Provision of psychosocial support to orphaned and vulnerable children and their families and children in residential care.
    • Provision of counselling services to sexually abused children, their families and people presenting with various interpersonal and intrapsychic issues.
    • Giving talks on social work-related topics.
    • Grief and bereavement counselling.
    • Palliative care
    • Family Systems and Relationships Therapy
  • Teaching social work at higher education institutes.
  • Management of Community Outreach programmes.

Publications

Chigangaidze , R.K. & Chinyenze, P. (2022) What it means to say, ‘a person is a person through other persons’: Ubuntu through humanistic-existential lenses of transactional analysis. Journal of Religion & Spirituality in Social Work: Social Thought, DOI: 10.1080/15426432.2022.2039341

Chigangaidze R.K., Chinyenze, P. (2021). Is It "Aging" or Immunosenescence? The COVID-19 Biopsychosocial Risk Factors Aggravating Immunosenescence as Another Risk Factor of the Morbus. A Developmental-clinical Social Work Perspective. J Gerontol Soc Work. Sep; 64 (6): 676-691.

Kajongwe, C; Chibaya, S; Mazula, E; Chinyenze, P & Dube, E. (2020). The Influence of Green Advertising on Consumer green Purchase Behaviour: A Case of the Retail Sector in Zimbabwe. International Journal of African Business Studies, 1(6), 4 – 23.

Muridzo, N. G., Chikadzi, V, Mafa, I. & Chinyenze, P. (2018). Parental circumstances Leading to Child Sexual Abuse in Zimbabwe. Journal of Social Development in Africa 33 (2).

Muchinako, G.A., Mabvurira, V., & Chinyenze, P. (2013). Mental illness and the Shona People. International Journal of Advanced Research in Management and Social Sciences 2.

SELECTED CONFERENCES

York University, United Kingdom 22 – 26 July 2019: 9th International Conference on Social Work in Health and Mental Health. Presented paper entitled Psychosocial issues presented by children in institutional care. A case study of four children’s homes in Harare, Zimbabwe

Regional Psychosocial Support Forum 4-6 September 2017 Arusha, Tanzania.

in the UK for Quality Education

Sustainable Development Goal 4, Times Higher Education Impact Rankings 2023

for Career Prospects

Whatuni Student Choice Awards 2023

for Facilities

Whatuni Student Choice Awards 2023

for Social Inclusion

The Times and The Sunday Times Good University Guide 2023

of Research Impact is ‘Outstanding’ or ‘Very Considerable’

Research Excellence Framework 2021

of Research is “Internationally Excellent” or “World Leading”

Research Excellence Framework 2021

Four Star Rating

QS Star Ratings 2021