The effects of jaundice on both new moms and babies are traumatising if not well handled. Hence doctors are kept on their toes to ensure that babies are not deformed and advert an extreme case of death.
Virtue Oboro was faced with the threatening challenge of jaundice at the birth of Tombra several years ago. The popular redemption for jaundice- blue-light phototherapy devices was not available in Oboro’s hospital. Virtue Oboro was left to her battle with her faith and the high risk of blood transfusion to her baby.
Impressively her baby, Tombra recovered but she didn’t recover without a solution in her hands.
In search of a solution against Jaundice, Virtue Oboro created an amazing new device she named Crib A’Glow and named her company Tiny Heart.
The device is powered by the African sun. With the aid of her husband, who had a basic knowledge of solar panels, Virtue Oboro was able to creatively add the use of solar to her device. The wise counsel from paediatricians was not ignored through the process of the design to ensure all details will benefit the babies.
The progress from Virtue Oboro’s “Crib A’Glow” device has been massive. The record has it that about 300,000 babies have been snatched from the cruel fingers of jaundice.
The price of Oboro’s locally made “Crib A’Glow” is one-sixth the price of the previous solution; blue-light phototherapy.
Virtue Oboro won a grant of $50,000 from Johnson & Johnson through African Innovation Challenge. That has been a big bag to carry the cost of production of more jaundice fighting devices.
Cribs are found in Ghana and over 500 hospitals across Nigeria, including rural areas.
