The Stanford Challenge: A Life Saving Embrace (2)

Summary

Jane Chen, CEO and co-founder of Embrace, discusses her social enterprise's mission to create affordable healthcare technologies for emerging markets. Embrace's first product is a low-cost infant warmer designed to help premature and low birth weight babies in rural areas, where traditional $20,000 incubators are inaccessible. The warmer uses a phase change material that maintains body temperature for 4-6 hours without electricity. With over 20 million babies born prematurely each year, this innovation addresses a critical need. Embrace aims to continue developing affordable healthcare solutions for underserved communities.

Takeaways

• 👤 Jane Chen is the CEO and co-founder of Embrace, a social enterprise focused on affordable healthcare technologies.
• 👶 Embrace's first product is a low-cost infant incubator aimed at helping premature and low birth weight babies in emerging markets.
• 🎓 Jane graduated from Stanford Business School in 2008 and participated in the 'Design for Extreme Affordability' course, which led to the creation of Embrace.
• 🍼 The goal was to build an incubator that costs less than 1% of a traditional incubator, which costs $20,000 in the U.S.
• 🌍 Around 20 million low birth weight and premature babies are born each year, with 4 million dying within the first 28 days.
• ❄️ These babies struggle to regulate their body temperature, leading to death or long-term health problems if they can't stay warm.
• 💡 Traditional incubators are expensive and require constant electricity, making them unsuitable for rural areas.
• 🚼 Unsafe alternatives like light bulbs, hot water bottles, and hot coals are often used to keep babies warm in these areas.
• 🛏️ The Embrace Infant Warmer is a portable, easy-to-use sleeping bag with a pouch of phase change material that maintains a consistent temperature for 4-6 hours.
• 🏥 Embrace’s long-term vision is to develop a range of affordable healthcare technologies for low-income communities, leveraging design, distribution, and manufacturing insights.

Q & A

What is Embrace, and what does it aim to achieve?

Embrace is a social enterprise that develops affordable healthcare technologies for people in emerging markets. Its primary goal is to create solutions like a low-cost infant incubator for vulnerable populations.

What was the challenge presented to Jane Chen's team during her time at Stanford?

The challenge was to build a baby incubator that costs less than 1% of the cost of a traditional incubator, which typically costs $20,000 in the U.S.

Why is the problem of low birth weight and premature babies so critical in developing countries?

Around 20 million low birth weight and premature babies are born each year, with 4 million dying within the first 28 days due to their inability to regulate body temperature, leading to death or severe long-term health problems.

What are some common, ineffective solutions currently used in rural areas to keep babies warm?

Some unsafe methods include placing light bulbs over babies, tying hot water bottles around them, or holding them over hot coals to provide warmth.

What makes traditional incubators unsuitable for use in rural areas?

Traditional incubators are expensive and require a constant supply of electricity, which is not available in many rural areas where premature babies are at risk.

What is the key innovation behind the Embrace Infant Warmer?

The Embrace Infant Warmer uses a phase change material, a wax-like substance that melts and maintains a consistent temperature of 90°F (human body temperature) for 4-6 hours, even without electricity.

Why is maintaining a consistent temperature so important for premature babies?

Premature babies cannot regulate their own body temperature due to a lack of body fat, and a consistent warmth is essential to keep them alive and prevent long-term health problems.

What are the design features of the Embrace Infant Warmer that make it suitable for use in rural settings?

The Embrace Infant Warmer is portable, easy to clean, and simple enough for a mother or midwife to use without the need for constant electricity.

How does Embrace plan to expand beyond the infant warmer?

Embrace’s long-term vision is to develop a whole line of affordable healthcare technologies and leverage their learnings in design, distribution, and manufacturing to serve communities in need.

What inspired Jane Chen to pursue the development of affordable healthcare technologies?

Jane Chen was inspired by her experience in a Stanford Business School class called 'Design for Extreme Affordability,' where she worked on projects aimed at improving life for people living on less than a dollar a day.