Frans Cronje MD, MSc

Frans J Cronje is a South African medical doctor specializing in diving, hyperbaric, and aerospace medicine. He received his Bachelor of Medicine & Surgery, BSc(Hons), and Master of Science degrees from the University of Pretoria cum laude in 1991, 1997, and 2007 respectively. He successfully completed all the medical licensing exams to practice medicine in the United States and subsequently completed a clinical Fellowship in Diving, Hyperbaric, and Underwater Medicine at Duke University, Durham, NC, USA in 2003.

Dr Cronje is considered the pioneer of modern hyperbaric oxygen therapy in Southern Africa and has dedicated 17 years of his professional career to introducing and expanding this scientific, therapeutic modality in South Africa. He was the founder, President, and CEO of Divers Alert Network of Southern Africa – a Section 21 not-for-profit company dedicated to the assistance and safety of recreational divers. Formerly in private practice at the first private hyperbaric medical facility in South Africa from 1998 to 2007, he is now a senior researcher and lecturer at the Department of Interdisciplinary Health Sciences, Division of Community Health, University of Stellenbosch. He also collaborates with the Department of Chemical Pathology to unravel the effects of genetic abnormalities and nutritional factors on health – particularly in neurodegenerative disease and cancer.

In 2010 Dr. Cronje participated in the Annual Meeting and the Research Workshop on Spirituality and Health presented by Prof Harold Koenig of the Duke Centre for Spirituality, Theology and Health in Durham, NC. Since then he has assisted in setting up the Be in Health For My Life (FML) Outcome Study at the University of Stellenbosch using various self-assessment questionnaires to determine the spiritual, mental, and health outcomes of individuals attending the FML program in Thomaston and South Africa. He serves voluntarily as the Scientific and Medical Advisor of Be in Health Africa (www.beinhealth.com).

He is the immediate past president of the International Congress of Hyperbaric Medicine, having hosted their prestigious three-yearly meeting in March 2011 in Cape Town. He is also a Past President of the Southern African Undersea and Hyperbaric Medical Association (SAUHMA) and founding & past President of the Wound Healing Association of Southern Africa (WHASA). He is married to Lucie Cronje, a registered nurse who shares his calling, and they have two daughters – Renee and Millicent. They live in Cape Town South Africa.