The life of a new-born is indescribably delicate. Of course, there are always complications that arise that cannot be planned for. With a staggering one million babies dying each year due to lack of oxygen at birth – an even more alarming figure is that 99% of them take place in low resource settings. It is said that the risk of death could be decreased by 16% for every 30 seconds reduction in time to ventilation (Ersdal, Mduma, Svensen, Perlman, 2012).
Darja Wendel’s Kanga addresses the process of resuscitation of a new-born and the training that’s involved with it. Working closely with Laerdal Global Health, Wendel constructed Kanga, which comprises of a support cradle and a transparent blanket. Kanga enables the resuscitation to happen anywhere and at any time, not separating the mother from the new-born. What makes the Kanga truly powerful, is its ability to provide the midwife-in-action with a light system which provides feedback and indication or when and/or how long to proceed with ventilation. Accompanying the Kanga is a support app which creates a training culture through feedback on what to focus on during the training.
In a world where it’s easy to get caught up in the latest smartphone to be released, it’s refreshing to see such great advances and thought towards medical practices in developing countries.
Designer: Darja Wendel for Laerdal Global Health
