Aster Guardians

Wilson

Wilson Fungameza Gwessa

Muhimbili National Hospital-

Mloganzila, Tanzania

With just 5 years of experience in nursing, Wilson has made a mark with his extraordinary contribution in curbing neonatal deaths. Initially working at Muhimbili National Hospital—Mloganzila in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU), Wilson observed that many newborn babies were dying, which led him to conducting a simple research survey on the cause of neonatal deaths. The research revealed that this was due to respiratory distress syndrome (RDS), especially in premature babies due to the immaturity of the lungs. At that time, the hospital didn't have any respiratory support machines (neither a CPAP machine nor a ventilator machine), so normal oxygen therapy was given as an alternative. This is when Wilson invested and introduced the Improvised Bubble CPAP Device in the hospital which reduced the neonatal deaths from respiratory problems from 14.1% to 5.9%. Wilson is now working in the department of training, research & consulting at Muhimbili National Hospital—Mloganzila and has also written a book titled ‘Nursing Diagnosis for Academic and Clinical Practice’. The book is the first to be locally written on nursing in Tanzania.