Jaundice is a critical global health issue among newborns
Jaundice is the #1 reason why newborns are admitted to hospitals worldwide. About 3 in 5 children have some degree of jaundice. For approximately 12% of babies, the condition is severe and requires treatment. Without timely treatment, a baby with severe jaundice may sustain brain damage or die.
Millions of babies are not receiving the effective care they need
With experts at
Stanford University School of Medicine, we estimate that
every year, over 6 million babies with severe jaundice are not receiving adequate treatment.
Yet, jaundice is EASY to treat.
If detected early enough, it simply requires shining BLUE LIGHT onto a baby’s skin for 2-3 days.
We are starting where the need is most critical
We learned from our fieldwork and due diligence, however, that urban hospitals, where very sick children are referred, also rarely have effective phototherapy – in fact, less than 10% in our target areas. The needs of these two settings, hospitals and clinics, are significantly different – and called for two devices.