About Us
Two female General Practitioners – Dr Deidre Reed and Dr Rinky Vamvadelis – have joined their practices to form the Helderberg Family Practice in Arun Place, Somerset West.
Both are experienced doctors who have worked in the area since 2019 and now offer a wider range of services to patients which includes inter alia Child Health; Women's Health; Geriatrics (Care for the Elderly); Diabetes; Hypertension; Cardiovascular Disease; HIV (Children/Adults); Palliative Care; and Minor Procedures (Cryotherapy/Moles), and Travel Vaccinations.
They regularly attend continuing professional development meetings and seminars and endeavor to practice evidence-based medicine with a holistic, pragmatic approach.
The practice is focused on the entire family. To ensure thoroughness they take time to get to know their families and advocate for medical insurance benefits. They also provide a house call service to their frail and elderly patients who are unable to visit their rooms.
Both doctors offer 20-minute consultations as a standard and submit to most medical aids including Discovery, Medscheme, and Gems.
Our Doctors
Dr Rinky Vamvadelis
General Practitioner
MBChB (UCT); MRCGP (UK)
MP 0527459 • PR 0268313
Dr Caterina "Rinky" Vamvadelis is a UCT graduate, who grew up in the Helderberg area. After completing her community service she moved to the Scottish Highlands to do her General Practice Fellowship. In 2006, Rinky came home and settled in the Southern Suburbs of Cape Town, where she worked in general practice for 12 years – first at Tokai Medicross and then at Muizenberg Medical Square. In 2019 she opted to move back home to the Helderberg region and has worked here ever since.
Her fields of interest include women’s health, paediatrics, diabetes, chronic disease management, travel medicine, and infectious diseases. She is passionate about her work and likes to advocate for the optimal care of her patients.
Dr Vamvadelis has a young daughter and enjoys spending time outdoors on little adventures. She is a voracious reader who enjoys relaxing while doing pottery, mosaic, and baking.
Dr Deidré Reed
General Practitioner
MBChB (UP)
MP 0472743 • PR 0035718
Dr Deidré Reed graduated from Pretoria University and did her internship in KZN. Post-internship she worked in Wales, England, and New Zealand gaining experience in paediatrics, psychiatry, and emergency medicine before joining her father as a GP in Bryanston, Johannesburg. Subsequently, she worked in a GP practice in Sedgefield and then with the Western Cape Dept. of Health where she acquired extensive experience in community medicine both in George and Strand.
Her fields of interest include women's health, preventative check-ups, geriatrics, diabetes, hypertension, HIV, and minor procedures (stitches, sun damage, moles).
She enjoys being able to treat all members of the family unit as this gives her good insight into illness as the family moves through different life stages.
She is the mother of 3 teenagers who mean the world to her and with whom she enjoys exploring the Cape Peninsula.
Our Services
Basic health screening is recommended every one to two years for all our patients. It is normally done with the patient's family history taken into account
with age-appropriate investigations as needed.
Both doctors have years of experience with common childhood illnesses and injuries and are comfortable seeing children of all ages. As parents themselves, they are sensitive to the stress that comes with a sick child and endeavour to see children promptly and advise on practical management
Applications to medical aids on the patient’s behalf for chronic/Prescribed Minimum Benefits (PMBs) to ensure funding for medication, consultations, and investigations. Diagnosis, explanation, and management of chronic conditions such as diabetes, asthma, hypertension, high cholesterol, and heart disease are offered. Regular follow-ups and maintenance care is advised.
Women's Wellness
Contraception
Women's check-ups include general examination, breast screening, abdominal exam, pap smear test, and pelvic floor assessment (as needed). Counseling is offered on all contraceptive options. Implanon and intrauterine contraceptive devices can be inserted at their rooms. Menopause screening and advice on how to manage this stage of one's health are provided. Dr Vamvadelis will soon be offering basic ultrasound scans in her practice too.
Mental
Wellbeing
Depression and anxiety in today’s world are common conditions that often go unrecognized. Both doctors screen for signs & symptoms of mental distress and can then advise on counseling, medication, and holistic management, and if needed liaise with specialist colleagues
Improving the health of older adults by preventing and treating disease and disability that often comes with aging has become important in our aging society. They focus on providing suitable treatment, intervention, and geriatric medicines to optimise the health of our senior patients.
Small skin lesions, warts, skin tags, cysts, and lipomas are removed under local anaesthetic or with Histofreeze (Liquid Nitrogen) in their rooms. They can remove ingrown nails and do biopsies, and incision & drainage procedures on smaller abscesses. Removal of sutures is also provided onsite.
They are proud to be of service to the LGBTQI community and strive to provide a judgment-free zone to allow the patient to feel comfortable accessing and receive the best healthcare services they deserve. They are also registered as Yellow Dot Doctors.
Pre- and post-travel consultations with up-to-date general information on the latest outbreaks. They have in stock vaccines for Measles, Mumps, Rubella, Hepatitis A & B, Meningitis, Rabies, Tetanus, Typhoid Fever, Yellow Fever, HPV, Shingles, and Chicken Pox. They can prescribe malaria prophylaxis and advise on any other travel recommendations according to the latest SA and international guidelines and the type of travel. Dr Vamvadelis is registered with the South African Society of Travel Medicine (SASTM). They are not a COVID-19 vaccination site but can assist to facilitate this vaccination. See more...
People living with serious illnesses need specialized medical care and also the support of their families. They understand the challenges which especially the terminally ill face and try to alleviate their physical and mental burdens. They are comfortable assisting families and loved ones during this difficult journey, often working in conjunction with capable colleagues (Hospice, nursing care, social workers).
Extensive experience in community medicine makes them knowledgeable in applying the latest guidelines on pre-exposure prophylaxis, post-exposure prophylaxis, and the optimal chronic management of people living with HIV.
All basic insurance, professional driver’s permits (PDPs), and Department of Home Affairs (DHA) medicals are done in their rooms. They can refer for radiology or stress ECG if required.
The practice is obliged by law to see their chronic patients every six months. Please provide the staff with specific details of the medication needed as well as preferred collection information. Certain prescriptions will need to be fetched in person. Please allow at least 24 hours for repeat prescription requests to be processed. Telephonic consultations and prescriptions require medical expertise and responsibility and therefore a fee may be levied for this service.
House
Calls
They endeavor to provide a house call service to their frail and elderly patients who are unable to visit their rooms. Preference is given to patient assessment in their rooms where better facilities are available for diagnosis and treatment. Please phone as early as possible preferably by 11 am for urgent home-visit requests. Non-urgent visits may be booked two to three days in advance.
Face-to-face and telephonic consultations are offered. Rapid Covid-19 antigen tests are also available for symptomatic patients and travelers whose destinations requirements allow this. They also offer COVID antibody tests on-site, as well as PCR testing via local laboratories.
Gallery
Contact Us
The Helderberg Family Practice
Send request for New Patient Form or general enquiries below.
The Helderberg Family Practice
Mon to Fri 8:00 am - 5:30 pm
Sat 9:00 am - 12:00 pm
info@thehfp.co.za +27 21 205 1146
+27 81 550 0677 (after hours)
2A Arun Place, Sir Lowry’s Pass Road, Somerset West, 7130