LittleBigSouls International Charitable Foundation The Voice For The Premature Baby Born In Africa , the  First and leading Charity of its kind across Africa  for pre-term  babies  and the Founding Partner/Co-Creator of World Prematurity Day  announces the vital  World Prematurity Day 2015  globally,  marking this year as its  6th  Annual World Prematurity LittleBigSouls is a co-founder of World Prematurity Day and  represents the African continent  within the World Prematurity Network. From inception LittleBigSouls has utilized its  EVERY BREATH COUNTS CAMPAIGN to highlight the struggle in the fight against Pre-term Birth.

This year ,Chief Mrs Yvonne Igweh CEO/Founder of  LittleBigSouls is proud to announce its  Partnership with Natus the leading provider of medical devices, software and services for newborn care, sleep, hearing , neonatal and vital healthcare equipment and are excited to make a strong global impact starting in South Africa with a donation under  the LittleBigSouls Equipment Donation and Jaundice Program generously supported by Natus.

This vital impact  in the  survival and care of babies affected by jaundice is  evident in the  charitable donation by LittleBigSouls and Natus  of the Non-invasive Jaundice/Bilirubin meter(Bilicare)  and a Phototherapy light (NeoBlue) to Dora Nginza Hospital  in Port Elizabeth on Friday 6th of November 2015 by Mr. Dale Isacks, Natus  International Regional Director Middle East and Africa and Mrs Anna Smith, LittleBigSouls International South Africa Co-ordinator and Representative.

Jaundice occurs in over 60% of newborn and especially affects pre-term babies who may have immature livers and other existing underlying problems,  and may not be easily visible on a baby’s skin  until levels are exceedingly high. Thus early detection and treatment is vital to prevent complications such as brain damage. The need to be vigilant for jaundice has to be incredibly high immediately from birth.

 Ceo/ Founder  of LittleBigSouls Chief Mrs Yvonne Igweh  states  that “LittleBigSouls is  incredibly proud of its partnership with Natus and very thankful of their generosity and belief in the mission of LittleBigSouls. We are  excited about our ability to greatly impact care and survival outcomes for preterm  babies and babies  affected with Jaundice. Jaundice can have dire consequences for  untreated babies  and  detection normally requires painful invasive procedures thus our joint efforts under our charitable programs  will   serve  to greatly enhance the life- saving care given to jaundiced babies.

This will in turn further help to eliminate the need for painful  invasive tests in jaundice detection, ultimately improve healthcare outcomes  of affected babies that may be cared for with the non-invasive meters and phototherapy light, reassuring families and  supporting  overall  the  dedicated and hardworking neonatologists and nurses at beneficiary hospitals”.

Fortuitously, the need to detect jaundice early was made evident  on the day of donation when a  baby presumed to be non-jaundiced  that was simply being tested with the non-invasive meter to demonstrate its use was then found to have  high bilirubin levels and immediately placed under the newly donated phototherapy light. This effectively helped to prevent jaundice-related complications from the outset highlighting the validity and necessity of this charitable mission. To date the LittleBigSouls Equipment Donation and Jaundice Program  has donated equipment to over 5 hospitals in Nigeria and now South Africa.

The work of LittleBigSouls in partnership with Natus highlights the fact that Premature Birth continues to be a global  crisis as the tragic facts  remain that a baby dies every second  across the Globe and 15 million babies are born each year to preterm birth from the Born Too Soon Report .Tragically 1 million babies die each year, 75 percent of which can be saved especially with programs such as the LittleBigSouls -Natus Equipment Donation and Jaundice Program.

LittleBigSouls and Natus  are thus pleased to announce their vital partnership and jointly advocate on this great initiative of honouring babies born too early on World Prematurity Day. This gives  a voice to voiceless families affected by pre-term birth, providing a platform on which  to share their stories, celebrating  their miracles and helping to  change the care and perception of prematurity and the terribly high death rates it claims daily.

 Thus for World Prematurity Day 2015 , across Africa,  from  South Africa,    Nigeria , Ghana,  Guinea   and  throughout  Europe. The USA, and  Australia  Medical professionals, families , Ministries of Health, Government Agencies , the private and public sector and the general public will be simultaneously joining hands to honor the 15 million babies that are born each year prematurely through LittleBigSouls  and its World Prematurity Network led initiatives .  In Nigeria , in addition to its community outreach LittleBigSouls will be lighting up the Bolingo Hotel and Towers Landmark building in purple as part of the Purple Light Up Campaign. LittleBigSouls is incredibly proud of its celebrity Ambassadors, International Music Star Tuface Ndibia, and leading Nollywood Actors Ejike Asiegbu and Francis Duru  who have been with the charity from the outset.

LittleBigSouls’ mission  is to fight against  the high  mortality rates of pre-term birth on the African continent . It achieves this through  its fantastic mission programs, utilizing vital  partners such as Natus  in its LittleBigSouls Pre-term Birth  Network  and harnessing the collective power of everyone and all  nations who support this cause  to move governments to prioritize better support of the neonatal healthcare sector, better education of medical professionals, the provision of desperately needed neonatal care equipment and low resource life- saving intervention measures  such as Kangaroo care to improve the care and survival of pregnant women and babies born too early to premature birth on the Africa continent and globally. 

To support LittleBigSouls or to be a part of the LittleBigSouls Mission and Network you can contact us at www.littlebigsouls.com follow us on Facebook at LittleBigSouls UK,US,Africa and on twitter @littlbigsoulsi.  LittleBigSouls The Voice For the Premature Baby Born in Africa .We Provide A Fighting Chance. Every Breath Counts.