Dr Karisha Roopnarain is a board-certified Specialist Neurologist with both national and international training and experience in Neurology. She treats every patient she encounters with compassion and respect, and provides them with a next level of comprehensive Neurological care.
Inspired by Nelson Mandela’s words “It always seems impossible until it is done”, she worked hard in matric to achieve a spot at Nelson R Mandela School of Medicine (UKZN). Her dedication and hard work earned her a summa cum laude pass.
As a proud Durbanite, she then set out to complete her internship and community service in Durban, at King Edward VIII Hospital and Prince Mshiyeni Memorial Hospital (PMMH) respectively. After spending two years as a medical officer in the Internal Medicine Department at PMMH, she jetted off to Cape Town to train as a Neurologist at Tygerberg Hospital and obtained a Master in Medicine (MMed) in Neurology at Stellenbosch University. For her MMed she investigated genetics as a cause of Parkinson’s Disease.
Her pursuit for further knowledge and research in Neurology led her to explore training opportunities in overseas. She received further training in movement disorders at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) in USA and in Neurogenetics at Luebeck University in Germany.
During her time at UCLA, she learnt about diagnosing and managing various movement disorders, including the use of deep brain stimulation (DBS) in managing patients with Parkinson’s Disease. In Germany, she studied genetics as a cause for neurological diseases, both clinically and in the laboratory. She was part of an International research group and presented her research at the Movement Disorders Society Congress in Spain.
Her diverse work experience includes both private (Kingsway Hospital and Hibiscus Scottburgh Hospital), being the only Neurologist on the KZN South Coast and government (Universitas Academic Hospital, Bloemfontein), as a specialist Neurologist and lecturer.
She is passionate about making a difference in the lives of people affected by neurological conditions such as Parkinson’s Disease, epilepsy and stroke, and other conditions affecting the brain, spinal cord, nerves and muscles.
