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Creating an enabling environment for premature babies’ survival – Naa Kuorkor Mayne-Eghan’s passion
● Naa Kuorko displaying an award
This week’s profile throws a spotlight on a distinguished lady whose passion is to ensure the wellness and healthy conditions of premature babies at the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) in Ghana to survive.
As the saying goes, “it is not only giants that do great things”, Naa Kuorkor Mayne- Eghan’s story cannot be swept under the carpet.
Her passion-driven sense for seeing premature babies survive has been phenomenal through her constant advocacy and sensitisation about “Preterms lives matter” under the auspices of Jay Foundation over the years.
The selfless lady is undoubtedly a philanthropist and a leader who has carved a well-deserved reputation via her Non-Governmental Organisation with a stint of generosity, integrity, dedication and enviable accomplishment in the area of neonatal healthcare, especially the lives of preterms.
Representing the voice of the babies
Naa Kuorkor’s enthusiasm for advocating the wellness and survival of premature babies emanated as a result of experiencing the issue of giving birth to premature twins in America where one unfortunately passed away.
The aforementioned encounter traumatised her for a longer period irrespective of the counselling she received.
After the predicament, she returned to Ghana with the baby who survived and later decided to form a foundation that would serve as a mouthpiece for these fragile babies to have the best of care while striving to survive in the NICU.
According to the benevolent lady, it was very prudent to address issues of preterm babies as an issue of public health concern that require critical attention.
Naa Kuorkor underscored that, stakeholder engagement with health facilities should always come up with pragmatic measures to help create policies that would help in the survival of these vulnerable babies.
“Births that usually occur before the 37th week of pregnancy are usually considered preterms and such babies require an extraordinary treatment at the NICU to serve a term to fully survive as that of a full term.
Impact of Jay Foundation to premature babies
Shedding uncontrollable tears, she told The Spectator that, “in Ghana preterm babies do not get adequate care due to lack of space, facilities, and essentials needed to evade infection, which causes death.
The Jay Foundation since its inception in 2019 has made donations worth about GH¢500,000 to NICUs in 10 hospitals and other medical facilities in the country to support preterm babies, their mothers, and staff of the hospitals, including Tema General Hospital, Nsawam, Korle Bu, Shai Osudoku, Keta Hospitals, Battor Catholic, Wenchi Hospital, Bamboi Polyclinic, Banda District Hospital, Jama Polyclinic and recently donated to the Ho Teaching Hospital.
Items donated included vegetables, fruits, digital thermometers, digital weighing scales, suction machines, pulse oximeters, nasal prongs, baby cots, cot sheets, bedsheets, drip stands, kangaroo Mother Care clothes, baby wipes, napkins, sanitisers, baby clothing, cleaning materials, among others.
“We are the voice of these precious ones and we encourage all to help these miracle babies survive, they didn’t ask to be born that way”, she bemoaned.
Naa Kuorkor stressed that, Life was a struggle and preterm babies started theirs right at birth, and what the little Jay Foundation could do was to make them comfortable and feel the love and support they deserve.
She commended her team members for their support to make successful projects and accomplishment with an aim of reducing the high mortality rate of neonates in the short term.
“Limited space is one of the major problems with all the facilities listed above except Korle Bu. But they also need an expansion looking at their numbers”, she noted.
These problems, she stated were associated with risks that included high infection rate, high mortality, no or little education on how to handle Neonates, less medical equipment, unclean environment and inadequate cleaning materials, inadequate NICU staff, poor ventilation, limited space for babies and mothers, no physical therapy at home after discharge just mention but a few.
“This year, we are putting up proper structures for Mother and babies, Mothers’ hostels and NICU’s and since we noticed that education is key we finally have an Educational Documentary on Prematurity in Ghana”, she highlighted.
Recognition/ Background
She has been awarded both locally and internationally for her sterling performances in helping create a safer haven for premature babies in Ghana.
Naa Kuorkor was born and raised by Mr. Benjamin Nii Aryeetey Aryee, a prominent contractor and Mrs. Esther Aryee, a retired Bio-Chemist who worked with the United Nations and Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital. She classified them as disciplinarians.
She is the first born and has three siblings.
Naa Kuorkor Mayne-Eghan was a Corporate Relationship Manager/ Banking Officer with Cal Bank for over eight years and currently the Chief Executive Office (CEO) of a Financial and Marketing Consultancy, Korghan Limited. She is again the CEO of Lingerie Picante.
She completed her basic education at St. Martin de Porres at Dansoman-Accra, and is an old girl of Wesley Girls’ High School, Cape Coast. She has a graduate Degree in Social Sciences from KNUST, a Master’s Degree in Finance from Ghana Institute of Management and Public Administration.
Naa Kuorkor is a mother of two, and a ‘Mummy’ to all, with personal premature birth and preterm babies experience; prefers to channel her ‘calling’ to help make others going through the same experience happy and less traumatised.
Interests
The Wesleyan who speaks Ga, Fante, Twi, English and French loves to play Basketball and recounted that she was the Basketball captain during her secondary school days at Wesley Girls’ High School and they won most of their interschool trophies.
Naa Kuorkor’s fondness for children is very strong and also likes to swim, travel and watch movies during her leisure.
She commended all her sponsors for the great support given to her and called for God’s grace to continually be with them.
She admonished families to support preterm mothers and advised society never to associate premature babies with bad spirits.
By Alfred Nii Arday Ankrah