Till date, neonatal care has not advanced synchronously with other sectors of technology. This is the main reason why despite the advancements in various sectors, including health services, there are high rates of infant mortality. So to say, it is approximated that 3 million babies fail to make it through their first month in life. With that said, 98 percent of the deaths are from developing nations. This should raise an alarm as to where neonatal care is heading. Contrastingly, many companies have thrown their hook to this sector, hoping to nurse and reduce these rates. However, most of their innovations are ineffective.
Ineffective neonate care technologies provide an ample opportunity to learn. This is why the recent introduction of the Neopenda baby care could bring an end to this menace. Funded by the Kickstarter, Neopenda, a new company has incepted a new way to provide neonatal healthcare solutions.
About Neopenda Company
To begin, Neopenda is a new healthcare company aiming at providing better services and transforming the neonatal healthcare sector. The company has developed the Neopenda monitor, which is a wearable product used mainly for critically ill newborns. The company targets low resource, low income and developing countries in a bid to reduce the percentile infant mortality death. The main reason being that these countries have inadequate resources to afford the expensive products used in developed countries. The company claims that this project is well thought off, well-engineered and most of all, effective.
The company released the Neopenda prototype to test its effectiveness before embarking on making the necessary changes and improvements for the final equipment. Having said this, the product monitors several newborn vital signs closely thus contributing to decreased mortality rates. With a wireless working formula, it makes it easy tracking the newborn’s conditions.
Working Process
Neopenda uses a multi-parameter sensor that when connected to the newborn to track some measurements. Some of the parameters that can be elicited include:
- The newborn’s heart rate
- The respiratory rate of the newborn
- The blood oxygen saturation
- Temperature
Just to mention, changes in temperatures are a common cause of neonatal death. Statistically, more than half of newborn mortalities begin by undetected temperature changes. The thing is, with newborns, temperature is a key health marker. Changes in temperature could indicate infection or sepsis among other serious conditions. With this said, it is important that the newborn temperature status is always up to date. Using the Neopenda machine, neonatal care providers and medical professionals will detect any changes thus allows them to make solid and quick decisions. This culminates in the ultimate reduction of mortality rates.
Benefits of the Neopenda Wearable Vital Signs Detector
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Neopenda Wearable Vital Signs Detector.jpg
With the above-mentioned properties, this device certainly has some important or beneficial elements. They include:
- They have rechargeable batteries. As indicated before, Neopenda is suitably designed for developing countries. Bearing this in mind, you should expect power supply to be a problem too. This is what primed the manufacturers of this device, Sona Shah and his co-founder, Teresa Cauval to use rechargeable batteries. Their engineering studies helped them develop a perfect battery that makes it easier to use the device. The absence of power cords makes it easier and less dangerous for the babies.
- It provides wireless transmission of data. The device is fixed with wireless properties that allow for data to be transmitted wirelessly from the baby to the healthcare practitioner’s monitor. With this, the health care provider is in a position to monitor the condition of the baby from far. The monitor also provides alerts during times of distresses allowing the health care team to manage the distress in its initial status.
- Better improvements and updates. As indicated before, the company released a prototype of the device. This was meant to test the feasibility of this device and how compatible and effective it can be when it comes to vital signs monitoring. This will provide a chance for the manufacturers to assess and make any necessary changes and improvements noted from defective or failed procedures during the testing period. The manufacturers expect some feedback and reviews from individuals who have used it before rolling out the final phase of manufacturing the actual Neopenda.
Awards and Recognitions
Due to the excellent, innovative work of Neopenda, it has received glamorous awards and recognitions. This comes along despite the device being in its initial stages of testing the prototype. Some of the awards and recognitions achieved by Neopenda from the healthcare sector and the global marketplace include:
- It won the 1st place in the Columbia University Women Entrepreneur Pitch Competitions.
- It was the finalist for the Tamer Fund for Social Ventures
- Won the 3rd place in the Columbia University Venture Competition Global Technologist Track
- Recognized in the 2016 Eco Startup Showcase
See More: Health Care Transformation by Wearable Technology
Conclusion
Neopenda is certainly bringing a revolution in the neonatal care sector. It is an outstanding innovative product that will work a long way in reducing the high infant mortality rates. This is what the developing countries need currently. The company provides an option for anyone who would like to keep abreast with the development of this product. You can visit the company’s website and find a “keep updated” option.
