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18 May 2025 | Story André Damons | Photo André Damons
Research room
Prof Corinna Walsh from the UFS Department of Nutrition and Dietetics explains how the PEA POD® infant body composition analyser works. Dr Balekile Mzangwa, CEO of Universitas Academic Hospital, and Dr Grace London, Chief Director: District Health services at the Free State Department of Health, listens in.

In a significant stride toward improving maternal and child health in the Free State, the Universitas Academic Hospital, in collaboration with the Faculty of Health Sciences at the University of the Free State (UFS), has launched an innovative Research Room which houses the PEA POD® infant body composition analyser and the Dual-Energy X-ray Absorptiometry (DXA) machine used to assess body composition and bone mineral density.

The initiative, which marks a new era in neonatal care and research, aims to integrate cutting-edge technology into routine clinical care. The PEA POD®, a non-invasive device that uses air displacement plethysmography, allows for precise measurement of fat and fat-free mass in newborns – offering a more accurate assessment of growth and nutritional status than traditional methods. 

The research room is a newly renovated and dedicated space adjacent to the maternity and neonatal units, ensuring quick, safe access to the newborns in the hospital. Two full-time MSc Dietetics students have been trained to perform the PEAPOD® assessments and colleagues from Radiography will perform the DXA assessments. This work lays the foundation for an ongoing maternal and infant body composition database –  a valuable resource for research, clinical care, and policy guidance.

Aligned with national health priorities

According to Prof Corinna Walsh from the UFS Department of Nutrition and Dietetics, this initiative is the result of a multidisciplinary collaboration across Paediatrics and Child Health, Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Radiography, Nutrition and Dietetics, to mention just a few of the collaborators. They are optimistic about the dual impact of this project as it advances academic and clinical research in early-life nutrition and growth as well as enhancing patient care at Universitas Hospital – bringing measurable benefits to mothers and their babies, she said. 

“This initiative is well aligned with national health priorities. According to the South African Early Childhood Review 2024, malnutrition in all its forms remains a significant challenge with short- and long-term consequences for mothers and their babies, especially during the first 1 000 days of life, from conception to the second birthday.

“We know from global and local evidence that growth patterns established during early life have profound and lasting effects on an individual’s health, development, and well-being. Our work at the University of the Free State has focused on the nutritional status of pregnant women and the early environments to which infants are exposed, both during and after pregnancy,” said Prof Walsh. 

However, she continued, in previous studies, they faced a significant challenge: the lack of specialised equipment to accurately measure infant body composition. Traditional measures such as weight and length provide only part of the picture.

 

New possibilities in healthcare, science, and service

Dr Mzangwa said the day not only marks the unveiling of state-of-the-art technology, but the beginning of a new chapter in how they will care for and understand the youngest and most vulnerable patients. The PEA POD® and DXA, which is now housed just steps away from the maternity and neonatal wards, symbolise a shared vision between the hospital and the Faculty of Health Sciences at the UFS: a vision grounded in evidence-based care, cutting-edge research, and above all, compassion.

“We express our sincere appreciation to everyone who supported this initiative. We also acknowledge the dedication of all the collaborating departments – Paediatrics and Child Health, Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Radiography, Nutrition and Dietetics –  and thank Prof Corinna Walsh and Dr Lizzy Tabane for their leadership and insight.”

Prof Janse van Vuuren, said: “Today, we do more than open a physical space. We open the door to new possibilities in healthcare, science, and service to the people of our province. It is a shining example of what can be achieved when government and academia come together, united by a common purpose – to improve lives through knowledge, innovation, and care.”

The technologies that will be used in this facility are more than just advanced instruments, they are tools that allow medical staff to better understand the human body in its earliest and most vulnerable stages, as well as throughout the lifespan. With this understanding comes the ability to make informed decisions, to intervene earlier, and to tailor care in ways that truly meet the needs of our patients, said Prof Janse van Vuuren.

“This space is more than a research centre. It is a testament to our commitment to evidence-based care. It is a place where data meets compassion, where science serves humanity. The work that will happen here will not be confined to the walls of academia –  it has the potential to ripple outward into clinics, into hospitals, and into homes. It will shape guidelines, inform policy, and ultimately, improve outcomes for patients across our province and beyond.”


News Archive

In January 1, 2003, the Qwa-Qwa campus of the University of the North (Unin) was incorporated into the University of the Free State (UFS).
2003-02-07


FREDERICK FOURIE

IN January 1, 2003, the Qwa-Qwa campus of the University of the North (Unin) was incorporated into the University of the Free State (UFS).

While this is merely the beginning of a long and complex process, it does represent a major milestone in overcoming the apartheid legacy in education, realising the anti-apartheid goal of a single non-racial university serving the Free State.

The incorporation is also part of the minister's broader restructuring of the higher education landscape in South Africa - a process which aims to reshape the ideologically driven legacy of the past.

In contrast to the past educational and social engineering that took place, the current process of incorporating the Qwa-Qwa campus of Unin into the UFS is informed by three fundamentally progressive policy objectives, clearly outlined in the education white paper 3: (A framework for the transformation of higher education):

To meet the demands of social justice to address the social and structural inequalities that characterise higher education.

To address the challenges of globalisation, in particular the role of knowledge and information processing in driving social and economic development.

To ensure that limited resources are effectively and efficiently utilised, given the competing and equally pressing priorities in other social sectors.

Besides informing the way the UFS is managing the current incorporation, these policy objectives have also informed the transformation of the UFS as an institution over the past five years.

In 2001, former president Nelson Mandela lauded the success of the UFS in managing this transformation, by describing the campus as a model of multiculturalism and multilingualism. This was at his acceptance of an honorary doctorate from the UFS.

Indeed our vision for the Qwa-Qwa campus as a branch of the UFS is exactly the same as it is for the main UFS campus - a model of transformation, academic excellence, community engagement and financial sustainability, building on the histories and strengths of both the Qwa-Qwa campus and the UFS (Bloemfontein campus).

Realising this vision will be a giant leap forward in establishing a unified higher education landscape in the Free State.

In more concrete terms, the UFS is working towards this vision by focusing on the following areas of intervention: access and equity; academic renewal; investment in facilities; and sound financial management.

These interventions are being made not to preserve any vestiges of privilege or superiority, but precisely to increase access for students from poor backgrounds and to promote equity and representivity among all staff.

The current growth phase of the UFS has seen student enrolment almost double over the past five years, in particular black students, who now constitute approximately 55 percent of the student population of nearly 18 000 (including off-campus and online students).

But it has not just been a numbers game. Our approach has been to ensure access with success.

Our admissions policy, coupled with the academic support and "career preparation" programmes we offer, have resulted in significant successes for students who otherwise would not have been allowed to study at a university.

This will be continued at Qwa-Qwa as well.

Our academic offerings too have undergone dramatic change. We have become the first university in the country to offer a degree programme based on the recognition of prior learning (RPL).

This is not just a matter of academic renewal but of access as well, especially for working adults in our country who were previously denied a university education.

As for the sound financial management of the UFS (including the Qwa-Qwa campus), this is being done not for the sake of saving a few rands and cents, but for the greater value to our society that comes from having sustainable institutions.

It is sustainable universities that can make long-term investments to fund employment equity, provide information technology for students, upgrade laboratories, construct new buildings, develop research capacity, and provide a safe environment for students and staff, as is happening now at the UFS.

As a result of such management, a practical benefit for prospective students at the Qwa-Qwa campus of the UFS will be lower academic fees in some cases compared with the Unin fees.

As is the case with all these processes, there are concerns from staff and students at Qwa-Qwa and the broader community of the region that the Qwa-Qwa campus serves.

To get the campus viable and to ensure its continuation in the short term, tough choices had to be made by the minister of education regarding which programmes to offer and fund.

But we have been encouraged by the community's understanding that these concerns can be addresed over time as the campus becomes financially viable.

Meetings between the top mangement of the UFS and community representatives, staff and students at Qwa-Qwa have laid the basis for building a climate of trust in such a complex process.

We should not be captives of the past divisions but build this new unified higher education landscape that can meet our country's developmental needs.

It should be a higher education landscape that is based on broadening access, promoting equity and social justice, developing academic excellence, and the effective and efficient management of scarce resources. This should be our common common objective.

Professor Frederick Fourie the rector and vice-chancellor of the University of the Free State (UFS)

 

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