Building for Women,
with Women.
Taking protection from a game of chance to choice. We are a team of clinicians and scientists dedicated to eliminating preventable birth trauma through women-centered co-creation: pairing empathy with rigorous design.
To bridge gaps in maternal and child healthcare by designing and delivering equitable, affordable, and culturally grounded innovations that ensure every mother and child; regardless of setting, has access to quality care.
A world where no mother or child is left behind, where healthcare is equitable and accessible for all.
Designed with empathy.
Our innovations are not born in a vacuum. They are born in the labor wards, the community centers, and the homes of the women we serve. We listen to their stories, we honor their strength, and we build solutions that respect their dignity.
Voices of Perineal Trauma
All stories gathered through our field research in East Africa, 2025.
"I was pinned down on my shoulders by two midwives as one sutured me. I still can feel their arms pinning me down after all these years. I would starve myself of fluids to reduce the bathroom visits. No. 2 was the worst experience."
A Mother's Memory
East African Birth Research, 2025
"Sex was painful for a year... it has been 5 years but I still can't bring myself to have another child. The fear stems from the tear, the repair, and what came after it. If I were to know now that I was pregnant, I would cry."
Long-term Sequelae
Patient Experience Study, 2025
"Anything to make sure no woman receives stitching during vaginal birth is welcomed. Maybe then, I can consider getting pregnant again."
Field Research Participant
East Africa, 2025
"Where it all began: observing the gaps in the delivery room."
Field Research, 2025
Equalizing Care.
Sawazisha.
The word Sawazisha is Swahili for "to equalize" or "to make fair." Our journey began with a simple observation in the delivery room: perineal trauma is treated as an inevitable part of birth, rather than a preventable injury.
The Founders
Proper buddies brought together by a shared cause.
We recognized that warm compresses and manual perineal support were effective: but lacked consistency and repeatability in high-pressure clinical settings. We are building on exactly where they fail.
"I felt broken when I should have felt whole. The tear was not just in my skin. It was in my days."
: Field Research Participant, East Africa 2025
Second Cohort of the East African Biodesign Program
Sawazisha MedTech Labs is proud to be part of the second cohort of the East African Biodesign Program: a global program of the Stanford Biodesign Center: training the next generation of health innovators who build for African health systems.
Want to know the people behind the mission?
Meet the TeamWhy we do what we do.
Sawazisha
To equalize and make healthcare fair for every mother, everywhere.
Evidence
Trusting the science of biomechanics and building on where evidence-based care breaks down.
Empowerment
Turning perineal protection from a game of chance to a deliberate, informed choice.
Dignity
Ensuring birth is a whole experience: not a broken one.
Ready to change the story
of birth?
Whether you're a clinician, a mother, a researcher, or an investor: we invite you to join us in making birth trauma a thing of the past.