Antke Zuechner – Improving children’s health through the mother

As a pediatrician, Antke Zuechner knows that the health status of children is in a large part determined by the health and knowledge of their mothers. Dr. Zuechner is working at Bugando Medical Centre in Mwanza Tanzania for three years with a German nonprofit called AGEH (Association for Development Cooperation); one of the main reasons she has committed her time and expertise to this East African hospital is the great need in terms of the sheer volume of children in Tanzania and the lack of pediatricians and other health professionals.

Dr. Zuechner divides her time between working in the wards, particularly in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU), and teaching students in the adjacent university, Bugando University College of Health Sciences. For a start, women need to know their HIV status in order to ensure they do not pass the infection to their newborns, especially since new drugs and practices make infection of the child so preventable. Education about HIV/AIDS, breastfeeding and other topics related to child health are important aspects of prenatal and antenatal care that Dr. Zuechner engages in on a daily basis. It is not uncommon for the mother to face a problem with breastfeeding due to calorie or vitamin deficiencies that are driven by a poor diet and poverty. A well recognized fact is that the economic status of a person affects their health-seeking behavior. A woman would need the means to travel to a hospital or health facility in order to receive and pay for their necessary treatment; fortunately, the government of Tanzania mandates that treatment for women and children under five is free of charge.

In Sengerema Hospital outside of Mwanza, a novel initiative to reduce the risk of pregnancy or delivery complications is at work. A housing complex has been devoted to pregnant at-risk women so that in the event of an emergency they are close to a well-equipped and staffed facility. This addresses a slue of the problems in Tanzania and throughout Africa: the lack of transport to health facilities, the unavailability of equipment and chronic understaffing. Perhaps programs such as this are possible in other areas in an effort to reduce maternal mortality. Dr. Zuechner has witnessed too many women that go into labor in transit to a health facility and put their child in danger.

Dr. Zuechner chose the medical profession because its dynamic and interesting work, research and experiences amaze her. Only one year into her three year stretch at Bugando, she realizes that she has quite a bit to learn still about the culture and medical situation. Driven by visible improvements to the situation, motivated students and residents, and a commitment to care for the 20 million children in Tanzania, she will continue to battle one of the world’s highest maternal and child mortality rates through her work.