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Improving maternal and child health in the Free State

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.

Dr Balekile Mzangwa, CEO of Universitas Academic Hospital, Dr Grace London, Chief Director: District Health services at the Free State Department of Health; Prof Corlia Janse van Vuuren, Acting Dean for the Faculty of Health Sciences; Prof Nicholas Pearce, Head of the UFS School of Clinical Medicine; Dr Lizzy Tabane, Head of the Department of Paediatrics and Child Health, Dr Lucia Meko, Department of Nutrition and Dietetics; and Prof Ray Maharaj, Head of Department of Obstetrics & Gynaecology, also attended the opening.

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

“To forgive is not an obligation. It’s a choice.” – Prof Minow during Reconciliation Lecture

2014-03-05

“To forgive is not an obligation. It’s a choice.” – Prof Minow during the Third Annual Reconciliation Lecture entitled Forgiveness, Law and Justice.
Photo: Johan Roux

No one could have anticipated the atmosphere in which Prof Martha Minow would visit the Bloemfontein Campus. And no one could have predicted how apt the timing of her message would be. As this formidable Dean of Harvard University’s Law School stepped behind the podium, a latent tension edged through the crowded audience.

“The issue of getting along after conflict is urgent.”

With these few words, Prof Minow exposed the essence of not only her lecture, but also the central concern of the entire university community.

As an expert on issues surrounding racial justice, Prof Minow has worked across the globe in post-conflict societies. How can we prevent atrocities from happening? she asked. Her answer was an honest, “I don’t know.” What she is certain of, on the other hand, is that the usual practice of either silence or retribution does not work. “I think that silence produces rage – understandably – and retribution produces the cycle of violence. Rather than ignoring what happens, rather than retribution, it would be good to reach for something more.” This is where reconciliation comes in.

Prof Minow put forward the idea that forgiveness should accompany reconciliation efforts. She defined forgiveness as a conscious, deliberate decision to forego rightful grounds of resentment towards those who have committed a wrong. “To forgive then, in this definition, is not an obligation. It’s a choice. And it’s held by the one who was harmed,” she explained.

Letting go of resentment cannot be forced – not even by the law. What the law can do, though, is either to encourage or discourage forgiveness. Prof Minow showed how the law can construct adversarial processes that render forgiveness less likely, when indeed its intention was the opposite. “Or, law can give people chances to meet together in spaces where they may apologise and they may forgive,” she continued. This point introduced some surprising revelations about our Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC).

Indeed, studies do report ambivalence, disappointment and mixed views about the TRC. Whatever our views are on its success, Prof Minow reported that people across the world wonder how South African did it. “It may not work entirely inside the country; outside the country it’s had a huge effect. It’s a touchstone for transitional justice.”

The TRC “seems to have coincided with, and maybe contributed to, the relatively peaceful political transition to democracy that is, frankly, an absolute miracle.” What came as a surprise to many is this: the fact that the TRC has affected transitional justice efforts in forty jurisdictions, including Rwanda, Sierra Leone, Cambodia and Liberia. It has even inspired the creation of a TRC in Greensborough, North Carolina, in the United States.

There are no blueprints for solving conflict, though. “But the possibility of something other than criminal trials, something other than war, something other than silence – that’s why the TRC, I think, has been such an exemplar to the world,” she commended.

Court decision cannot rebuild a society, though. Only individuals can forgive. Only individuals can start with purposeful, daily decisions to forgive and forge a common future. Forgiveness is rather like kindness, she suggested. It’s a resource without limits. It’s not scarce like water or money. It’s within our reach. But if it’s forced, it’s not forgiveness.

“It is good,” Prof Minow warned, “to be cautious about the use of law to deliberately shape or manipulate the feelings of any individual. But it is no less important to admit that law does affect human beings, not just in its results, but in its process.” And then we must take responsibility for how we use that law.

“A government can judge, but only people can forgive.” As Prof Minow’s words lingered, the air suddenly seemed a bit more buoyant.

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