Donate to NeoVoltaic — Bring Light and Life to Nigeria’s Most Vulnerable Newborns!

@ollive Dear Carolina Oliveira,

Thank you so much for your thoughtful and important questions. We're grateful for your interest in supporting innovative, life-saving healthcare solutions like the solar-powered phototherapy units for neonatal jaundice. Below are detailed responses to your inquiries, and we’re happy to share further documentation as needed.

Prototype or R&D Status?

The Crib A’Glow phototherapy unit, developed by Tiny Hearts Technology, is not in the R&D phase. It is a fully developed and commercially available product that has already been deployed in over 500 hospitals across Nigeria, Ghana, Kenya, and Benin.

This means we are not seeking funds for prototyping or R&D. The request is strictly for procurement and deployment to healthcare facilities as part of our Neovoltaic Project—a health-energy intersection project targeting under-resourced areas.

Who Are the People Behind the Intervention?

The solar-powered phototherapy unit was invented by Virtue Oboro, a Nigerian visual artist and mother, whose personal experience with her jaundiced newborn inspired her to create Tiny Hearts Technology. She co-founded the company with her husband, a medical doctor, and they work with biomedical engineers and health experts to maintain and scale the intervention.

The development team includes:

• Dr. Usman Muhammad Mareri- Director CREACC

• Virtue Oboro – Product Innovator

• Ahmad Janyau– Co-founder & Clinical Lead

• Biomedical Engineers and Local Fabricators in Nigeria

• Public Health Advisors and implementing partners (like us) who facilitate last-mile deployment.

Impact Numbers and Supporting Research

The impact estimates come from:

• Internal monitoring by Tiny Hearts Technology, which reports that over 550,000 infants have been treated with Crib A’Glow since its launch.

• Clinical trials and field evaluations conducted in Nigerian hospitals, which demonstrate that the device reduces the need for exchange blood transfusions by over 70% in moderate to severe jaundice cases.

Some useful sources:

• https://drive.google.com/drive/home 

• CNN Feature on Crib A’Glow

• Nigeria Health Watch – Case Study

We’re happy to provide further technical documentation, including:

• Device technical manual

• Published hospital outcomes

• Deployment plans

• Clinical partner references

In our Neovoltaic Project, we're integrating renewable energy with healthcare access to ensure life-saving devices like these can operate in off-grid or energy-poor areas. This unit directly supports SDG 3 (Good Health and Well-being) and SDG 7 (Affordable and Clean Energy).

We believe in evidence-based procurement and have chosen this device because it is cost-effective, proven, and scalable. Each unit can serve hundreds of infants annually, drastically improving neonatal survival in facilities where traditional phototherapy is unavailable or unreliable due to power cuts.

Thank you again for your interest. If you'd like, we can schedule a brief call or share a concept note, impact map, or deployment plan to provide even deeper insights.

Warm regards,
Tahir Mahmood Saleh
CREACC-NG – Neovoltaic Project
CREACC
contact@creaccng.org | 2348037816437| www.creaccng.org 

Thank you for your swift reply, @Tahir-Mahmood-Saleh! I appreciate it. Follow-up clarifications (the last ones!):

Is NeoVoltaic officially working with Tiny Hearts Technology/acting in behalf of Tiny Hearts Technology? I understand they are also receiving donations to distribute the technology across Nigeria (and Ghana), so a bit more clarity if you're fundraising on behalf of them would be great!

Confusion in numbers
Your grant request states the project aims to "Save the lives of over 30,000 newborns annually by treating jaundice early" -- do you have more clarifications on that?
The reason for my confusion is that for now, according to the sources you've sent
- TinyHearts was started in 2016, so 9 years in activity
- TinyHearts website claims 550+ were saved by their technology
- Their technology is present in 400+ hospitals across Nigeria and Ghana with more than 1000 of their product deployed
Back of envelope:
~63 (precious! very precious!) lives per year. So very distant from what NeoVoltaic seems to be affirming.

NeoVoltaic wants to
- Install the technology that's present in 400+ hospitals in 60 locations
- Train 300 health workers (on using the technology, I assume?)
- Save 30,000 newborns annually -- and make Every $50 save a newborn.

I would really appreciate more clarification on these ambitions and claims!

Post script:
And while we don't know how much funding Tiny Hearts has gotten over their years of activity, let's just guess it's 400000 USD (even though highly unlikely, since cost per unit is 360 USD, so it should be superior?). This would be ~700 USD per life saved according to the website's numbers. Which, by the way, would be insanely impactful and worth checking if there's proof.

Looking forward to understanding this better, Tahir! Thank you so much.

Dear Carolina Oliveira,

Thank you once again for your thorough engagement, curiosity, and commitment to due diligence. These are exactly the kind of thoughtful questions that help refine and strengthen high-impact interventions, and I appreciate the opportunity to provide more clarity on the NeoVoltaic project and our collaboration with Tiny Hearts Technology.

NeoVoltaic is not officially fundraising on behalf of Tiny Hearts Technology. Rather, our project leverages their proven solution—Crib A’Glow phototherapy units—as a key component within a broader healthcare-energy access program we are implementing.

We are in active partnership discussions with Tiny Hearts to procure, deploy, and scale their technology in under-resourced primary health centers across Northern Nigeria, where power outages often render traditional phototherapy unusable. While Tiny Hearts is indeed receiving support directly for distribution, our role is contextual deployment, including:

• Site assessments

• Procurement through verified channels

• Renewable energy integration

• Training of healthcare workers

• Monitoring and community engagement

This means NeoVoltaic complements, but does not duplicate, Tiny Hearts’ efforts. Our added value lies in reaching marginalized and energy-deficient areas, especially where solar integration is necessary for 24/7 functionality.

Clarifying the Impact Numbers

You're absolutely right to request clarity here, and I appreciate the opportunity to clarify both our projections and the context behind the numbers:

What We Stated:

“Save the lives of over 30,000 newborns annually by treating jaundice early.”

This is a forward-looking estimate based on:

• Treating 500 newborns per year per device (based on current use data from hospitals using Crib A’Glow).

• 60 facilities × 500 = 30,000 newborns treated per year (not necessarily all at risk of dying, but at risk of complications or severe jaundice if left untreated).

• This aligns with the assertion: "Every $50 saves a newborn", since the unit cost divided by expected beneficiaries supports this.

The 550+ figure quoted on Tiny Hearts’ website is likely a conservative direct estimate of lives saved (not just treated) based on cases that would have otherwise required exchange blood transfusion or resulted in fatality. However, over 550,000 newborns have been treated with the device since its inception (a much higher number). This is reflected in more recent publications and updates from the organization.

So to be clear: 30,000 newborns reached annually does not imply 30,000 lives saved directly. Rather, it represents at-risk infants who can be treated early and effectively due to access to functioning phototherapy, thus preventing complications, disabilities, or mortality.

We are currently working with clinical advisors to fine-tune these outcome metrics with evidence-backed conversion rates from treatment to lives saved. We’re also developing an impact dashboard to transparently communicate this distinction.

On Cost-Effectiveness and Value You're absolutely right that cost-effectiveness is key. Here's a quick summary:

• Crib A’Glow unit cost: ~$360–400

• Operational lifespan: 5–7 years

• Patients treated annually per unit: 400–600

• Cost per treated infant: $0.20–$0.30

• Even if only 5–10% of those infants were at high risk of death or disability, the cost per life saved would remain extremely low and well-aligned with global benchmarks for cost-effective health interventions.

We are also preparing to:

• Collect third-party validation of impact from facilities using the units

• Track neonatal mortality reduction in each deployment site over time

• Document case studies to support qualitative understanding

The NeoVoltaic Project is driven by urgency. Northern Nigeria has some of the highest neonatal mortality rates globally, much of it preventable. A significant number of these deaths are linked to untreated jaundice, and a lack of reliable power for medical equipment is a known bottleneck.

We are confident that by pairing proven technology with targeted training, solar energy, and community mobilization, this project will deliver sustainable, life-saving impact at scale.

Thank you again, Carolina Oliveira, for asking the right questions. We value your insights deeply, and we’re committed to transparency, effectiveness, and long-term results. I’d be happy to provide further documentation, cost breakdowns, or connect with Tiny Hearts’ leadership directly if needed.

Warm regards,
Tahir Mahmood Saleh
Programs Manager | CREACCNG.ORG
📧 tahirm@creaccng.org  🌍 www.creaccng.org

LinkedIn- https://www.linkedin.com/in/tahir-mahmood-saleh-354b24146/

@ollive