[100 Emerging Women Leaders] How DrSumitra Meena is making quality maternal and child healthcare accessible

Growing up in a farming family in the Dorsa district of Rajasthan, Dr Sumitra Meena witnessed the grim realities of rural healthcare firsthand. 

As a young girl, Dr Meena saw mothers in her village lose their lives during childbirth. There was no proper medical care available, and the nearest hospital with specialised doctors was in Jaipur, roughly 70 kilometres away.

These experiences, particularly the death of her sister and other women in her community after childbirth, became defining moments for her. "When I was 10 years old, my elder sister passed away due to infections caused while delivery. She had given birth at home because there were no hospitals near our village. That was when I resolved to work hard and become a doctor, so that someday I could stop these incidents from happening," she shares in a conversation with HerStory. “I saw so many babies die within days of being born due to the lack of medical care. It was normal in the village, but for me, it was devastating,” she adds.

Witnessing these preventable deaths inspired her to pursue a career in medicine.

“I studied in a government school in my village until Class 10,” she recalls. Continuing her education meant walking several kilometers everyday to a neighbouring village for classes, but her vision of ensuring quality healthcare was accessible to all fueled her drive. 

After completing her schooling, Dr Meena’s determination to practice medicine led her to one of India’s premier medical institutions, Lady Hardinge Medical College, Delhi, where she earned her MBBS and later specialised in paediatrics. 

She then went on to do her Senior Residency at Safdarjung Hospital, completing it in 2021. “I’ve always known that I wanted to make healthcare more accessible, especially for women and children in rural areas,” she says.

Why teleconsulting

In 2020, Dr Meena experienced the challenges of being a new mother herself, after she gave birth to her son just as the COVID-19 pandemic hit India. Within months, she rejoined the hospital due to the dire need for more doctors on duty, only to contract the virus herself, which then spread to her infant son. 

This experience deepened her understanding of the vulnerability of mothers and newborns. During the second wave of the pandemic, she witnessed the overwhelming helplessness of families unable to access basic medical care. “I had parents calling me, desperate for oxygen or hospital beds, but we were helpless,” she recounts.

This period further crystallised her vision: to create a platform where mothers and parents could access quality healthcare without having to visit a hospital for every small query. 

“COVID taught me that teleconsultation could work, and people were more willing to accept that a doctor could diagnose and help without necessarily meeting in person,” says Dr Meena. 

“Also, travelling to the hospital with newborn children, exposed them and their mothers to infections and risks. Doing so didn’t necessarily get them the right treatment either,” she adds.

Babynama was launched in April 2022 as a simple WhatsApp group where parents could text Dr Meena with concerns, and she would respond within minutes. 

“Initially, it was just me, answering questions for over 2,000 parents,” she explains. “It was overwhelming, but it showed me the scale of the need.” 

As the demand grew, she began onboarding other paediatricians, lactation consultants, and nutritionists, expanding Babynama’s services to include 24/7 paediatric consultations, breastfeeding support, and child nutrition guidance.

Babynama now serves over 150,000 parents, offering a wide range of services designed to support mothers and newborns. 

“Mothers needed so much more than just paediatric advice,” she says. “We added lactation consultants because breastfeeding has emerged as a challenge for nearly 80% of our mothers. Then came nutritionists to help guide new mothers on what to feed their babies.”

The platform also offers postpartum counselling, recognising the emotional toll many new mothers face. “A lot of women struggle with postpartum depression, as pregnancy can be not just physically, but also mentally and physiologically exhausting. So we wanted to provide them with a safe space to talk to a psychologist,” she adds.

To date, Babynama has helped around 2 lakh parents through WhatsApp queries and free webinars.

Accessible, affordable healthcare

The core of BabynNama’s success lies in its accessibility. Mothers can subscribe to the platform for as little as Rs 499 per month, which provides them with unlimited paediatric consultations via text, along with access to other experts depending on their needs. “We wanted to make it affordable because healthcare should not be a luxury,” says Dr Meena.

Looking ahead, Dr Meena envisions Babynama offering its services to more underserved communities and developing the platform’s technological capabilities, possibly integrating AI to assist in diagnosis and improve the speed and accuracy of consultations.

For young women entering the medical field, Dr Meena has a simple,  but powerful message: “Pregnancy is romanticised in India, but mothers don’t get the right care and treatment. It is key to understand your patient, their physical, mental and psychological history before jumping to treat them,” she says. 

“The fact that we are an online platform makes this an extremely crucial exercise and foundation for the work we do,” she says.