MA R T H A M w a n s a , m o t h e r o f t h e quadruplets who were recently born at the University Teaching Hospitals (UTH), has changed her negative perception of doctors at the country’s highest referral facility. Mrs Mwansa, 25, who was successfully delivered of the four ‘bundles of joy’, says what she experienced at UTH was service beyond the call of duty.

“I was very sceptical about changing the hospital from a private to a government one but I was advised to do so because of my high-risk pregnancy. My God, the doctors and nurses are so dedicated to their work!” Mrs Mwansa said.

Speaking in an interview yesterday, she thanked UTH medical personnel for their dedication to saving lives.

“I had my own doctors and so did my babies. I learnt how to prepare their meals and to feed them,” she said. Mrs Mwansa said taking care of the four babies is both a blessing and challenge because she does not have the knowledge on how to do so. Being the last-born and the only girl in a family of seven boys robbed her of the opportunity of caring for a sibling.

She is now a first-time mother of four babies she will fend for every day. Mrs Mwansa is ready to take up the challenge of fending for the children, especially with support from her husband, Chikonde, and her mother, Margaret Kaluba. Last month, Mrs Mwansa, a law graduate of Silverest in Lusaka, was delivered of the quadruplets at UTH. “The news of having four babies came as a shock to us but God has been with us throughout the process.

I discovered that I was pregnant when I was about to write my final law examination at University of Zambia last year. “The morning sicknesses were so intense, the whole process has been overwhelming, I have been in and out of hospital but we have pulled through,” she said. Mrs Mwansa said the idea of having more children any time soon is not anywhere near her mind because “I will live one day at a time and see what the future holds”.

The couple has named the babies as Faith, Aretha, Angel and Chikonde. Away from nursing the babies, Mrs Mwansa plans to enrol for Zambia Institute of Advanced Legal Education in next year’s intake. And Mr Mwansa urged his fellow men to be supportive to their expectant partners because the process