Sarah Schütz
On assignment as a midwife in the Central African Republic
Name
Sarah Schütz
Age
27 years old
Profession
Midwife
Country of operation
Central African Republic
Duration of mission
6 months
My everyday life in the project
We do morning rounds, then I stay in the maternité and do consultation hours with the matrônes for any kind of gynecological complaints and questions. At the same time, there is a consultation for pregnant women, led by an assistant accoucheuse, and if questions arise there, I am also the contact person for them. Of course, I am also present at births. Around noon, I eat together with my colleague, and then the afternoon rounds take place, again. I am also available throughout in obstetrical emergencies, since we live on the hospital grounds. One is called in the night, with questions about cesarean sections, uterine ruptures or trapped placenta. I also accompanied rounds in all the other services (pediatrics, surgery, and internal).
What did you like most about your work?
In this case, I particularly liked the exchange with the staff on site in the delivery room. I really enjoyed working with them. I found it impressive how the women give birth to their child without any kind of anaesthetics. I also found it nice to see how the Matrônes developed further in their work through our exchange.
Reasons why you work for Cap Anamur:
I find the idea of a small NGO more familial than a large apparatus like the UN or MSF (Doctors Without Borders).
Some memories or special moments:
I remember a premature birth of twins by Maimuna (mother’s name), she directly understood that it was dire for her children and fought so hard for their survival. She pumped milk, gave milk independently through the feeding tube, and understood that the oxygen tubes were especially vital for her daughter’s survival. The family took turns with the kangaroo method to keep the kids warm. Unfortunately, her daughter didn’t make it. However, her son did progress wonderfully. That motivation and willpower of Maimuna was just incredibly impressive.
Team members in portrait
Thorsten Kirsch works as a nurse for Cap Anamur in Somaliland. His most important piece of luggage for the trip: His guitar. Being involved in areas where his strengths lie and having an incredible number of opportunities for further training - Thorsten has taken a lot away for himself from his assignment.
Pediatric nurse Simone Ross had great experiences in both Sierra Leone and Uganda. Working in the emergency room, in the infant and pediatric wards, training local staff, organizing materials for the laboratory - the varied and diverse tasks were what she appreciated most about her work in the project.
As project coordinator, Shabbir Ahmed takes care of the health care facilities in Bangladesh with which Cap Anamur has cooperation agreements.
Midwife Sarah Schütz worked for six months in the Central African Republic at our hospital in Bossembélé. There she helped deliver many children including twins and premature babies.
Nurse Nele Grapentin's first mission took her to Uganda, but it is by no means to be her last mission for Cap Anamur. The curiosity of the children, the incredible strength of the Ugandan women and such a diverse country - when Nele Grapentin talks about her mission, she quickly goes into raptures.
Mathias Voss, a nurse, spent more than a year working in our hospital in Sudan. His duties included ward, emergency room or maternal-child clinic rounds and continuing education for local staff members.
Above all, the strong women impressed nurse Karina Busemann in Somaliland. If she had to list all the fond memories she has of her time on the project, it would probably make an entire book. The laughing children will remain in her memory for a long time.
Pediatrician Dorothea Kumpf was in Somalia for Cap Anamur. For six months, the young woman worked in a hospital in Somalialand, an area in the north of the country. Especially the open nature of the population remained in her lasting memory.
The nurse Anika Wentz talks about her 6 month assignment in our hospital in the Nuba Mountains in the south of Sudan. There, she experienced many things that impress her to this day.
Andreas Tsukalas works as an architect for Cap Anamur in Somaliland. This is already his sixth deployment.
Afghan-born Faisal Haidari works as a project coordinator for Cap Anamur in Afghanistan. Since 2001, the Afghan, of Tajik descent, has been taking care of the progress of Cap Anamur projects in troubled Afghanistan.