TECHNOLOGY FOR 'NEWBORNS'

Everybody knows that birth rate is so much higher in developing countries than in developed ones.

Not everybody has birth control resources, and not everybody receives education about that; due to, not all children are wanted.

In addition, controlling the population is a hard work. In these countries, many times women don’t have the power to decide anything about their lives. That means that anyone can give orders to their bodies, marriages, sexual relationships…

On the other hand, we can find many diseases; like pneumonia, diarrhea, Malaria…
As a result, the lack of education and safety resources brings the death of about 9’2 million children under the age of 5 every year.
When these children are born, they do it prematurely or with low birth weight, and they also have to face a society that lacks the tools to live properly. Because of that, many of them end up dying.

In response to this, different associations have designed projects to improve the birth conditions.


DESIGN THAT MATTERS

One of them is Design that matters, by Timothy Prestero.

He says that he does’t work in order to obtain a prize, he works to help people.

'Everybody loves a beautiful baby, so I will start with an example from a project we did about a newborn health. Here is a problem.'

Prestero tells us that millions of babies die in their first year of life and we could reduce this number, if they could be kept on warm during the first days.



A hospital of Japan gave an incubator to Kathmandu (Nepal) because they bought new equipment. Things like that try to improve the safety in poor countries, however these end out becoming junk.
But, if we stop and think… keeping a child warmed doesn’t need much science. It’s here where it starts our project.

Design that matters began a research with a group of Boston and they asked what people wanted. What is necessary in countries that lack of the most of the essential things?


They created and designed lots of prototypes and only one of them became convincing: NeoNurture incubator. So, the idea was marry something beautiful with something that actually works. Because of that, the inventor couldn’t think in prizes, nor in make a useful product.

They felt great, but finally the incubator wasn’t used, just in the front of the magazine.
'The outcome is always to improve the society and make the world a better place.'

Designing a machine like that could be very slow and ineffective… and it has to be used in poor hospitals, developing countries…

• Firstly, they have to think about: Who wants the costumer? Who is going to buy the product?

In these countries, the business hardly ever buys its own products, another multinational does it.

They founded an organization called MTTS in Vietnam that makes newborn technologies for South-east of Asia. His socio is an American foundation that distributes technology to poor hospitals whereabouts.

• Secondly, they have to find out the problem: What problem do they want to solve? Jaundice.

Jaundice (babies with yellow skin) affects two thirds of newborns around the world and it has serious consequences. Sometimes it causes different incapacities but children can even die. Its treatment is expensive and dangerous, but… it exists another cure. Maybe this one is so technological and complex but it can have success.

It’s called phototherapy. You’ve got to shine blue light on the child (bright blue light on as much of the skin as you can cover).

It shouldn’t be difficult, but it is. In USA this dispositive of phototherapy is used, but not like it should be used.


We realized that it isn’t efficient; as well as, there are more problems. When a mother sees her baby uncovered under a strong light, she will put a blanket over him. Maybe that’s not the best behaviour. But as a conclusion, it doesn’t exist silly users, there are only dump products.
So we’ve learnt that the product has to have an actually use.

Workers from MTTS have developed technologies to treat newborn diseases (baby heaters, systems to control the breathing…) So they have achieved the making of something cheap, resistant, with an easy and clear use, for many children, efficient…

Now, over fifty thousand children in Vietnam enjoy these devices.

The problem is: everybody knows how medical devices look, so a good appearance is so important too. Many hospitals prefer not to have any equipment, before having something that works well but doesn’t look so good. And the costumers have the power, they have to trust in the product.

• So lastly, we’ve tidied up all this information given to make it properly this time. This is the Firefly phototherapy device.

Since we began; we talked with the manufacturers. The outcome was create an innovative product, something they could make and repair with resources they have access to; made for a single baby, an obvious device, easy and correct to use, sealed and if mothers covered their children, the Firefly has lights above and below the baby.

Anyway, WE HAVE TO DESIGN FOR:

- Inspiration (have influence over others manufacturers).
- Outcomes (make the world a better place).

- Manufacture & Distribution (know who wants the product and who buys it).

- Appearances (it has to be attractive and a product you could trust in).

- Actually use(think about how it will be used).


'DESIGN FOR THE WORLD THAT WE WANT, THAT WE HAVE, THAT IS COMING.
WE HAVE TO DESIGN OUTCOMES AND THAT’S THE DESIGN THAT MATTERS.'

For more information:http://www.designthatmatters.org/firefly


BIBLIOGRAPHY:

The main causes of child mortality in developing countries.
http://borgenproject.org

Why is birth-rate higher in developing countries.
https://www.quora.com

Project, Design that matters.
http://www.designthatmatters.org