Dr. Mekdes Shifeta is working as a pediatrician and as an assistant professor of pediatrics and child health in Hawassa University Comprehensives Specialized Hospital at the College of Medicine and Health Science. In addition to the regular patient care, she is also mentoring both undergraduate and postgraduate medical students for the past 8 years.
Currently, Mekdes leads Saving Little Lives (SLL) project at Hawassa University, one of the consortium University supporting implementation in Sidama, South west, Central, and South regions of Ethiopia. SLL is a large-scale project funded by the Global Financing Facility and coordinated by UNICEF Ethiopia. The project is designed to accelerate the scale-up of package of interventions for preterm and low birth weight babies across 290 hospitals in Ethiopia.
Mekdes is also working as a principal investigator for SLL 360 (NEST 360) at Hawassa university. It is multi country research project. January 2024 – December 2028, facilitated and supported by WILLIAM MARSH RICE UNIVERSITY and funded by; the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the Children’s Investment Fund UK (CIFF), and ELMA Foundations
In addition, Mekdes is working as implementation coordinator for immediate Kangaroo Mother Care in Ethiopia: a multi-center implementation research. 2023 – 2026 (Funded by BMGF and coordinated by World Health Organization).