The Voice for the Premature Baby Born in Africa
Having a premature baby can be one of the toughest challenges a family can face. At LittleBigSouls, we believe that nobody should have to take this journey alone. We support Neonatal Intensive Care Units and families to give our preemies a fighting chance at survival through NICU and beyond.
Who We Are and What We Do
LittleBigSoulsGhana is an international not-for-profit organization incorporated in Ghana, with an African wide focus and mission, LittleBigSoulsGhana is committed to advocating on the serious issue of prematurity and the reduction of the terrible rates of death and disability for preterm babies born in Africa.
The organisation was founded in 2003 following the tragic and very avoidable death of the preterm daughter of Edith & Mitaire Uyovbukerhi. The founders and patrons of LittleBigSouls are committed to working to level the playing field for the care of the premature baby and to ensure that every baby born in Africa gets a fighting chance at survival.
What We Fight For
"Every life, including premature babies lives matter"
LittleBigSouls is the first organisation of its kind in Africa
Our purpose is an un-wavering commitment to the health of premature and sick babies in reducing death and disability for preterm babies born in Africa.
Africa has the greatest percentage of mortality rates and thus bleak odds for pre-term babies born across our continent. Through our programs within our mission, we provide for and advocate strongly on the issues of pre-term birth in Africa.
LittleBigSouls programmes provide care and support for the baby and the mother, serving as the audible voice for our vulnerable and sick babies to give our precious Little Big Souls, born in less privileged parts of Africa, a fighting chance.
We get closer to this goal through our integrated efforts at our Charitable Foundation. Want to find out how to get involved?
Our Programs
We work everyday to better the lives of our precious preemies and their families through our many programs — including Equipment Donation, Medical Training Program, Parental Support Program, Emergency Transportation, Advocacy and Awareness of Prematurity.
Learn more about our efforts and how working together can make a lasting impact! Contact us if you’d like more information on how to donate or volunteer.
The Equipment Donation Program
LittleBigSouls Equipment Donation Program:
Provides vital equipment to existing Neonatal Intensive Care Units (NICU's) in hospitals within the region.
Supports the NICU’s within beneficiary hospitals and the setup of NICU’s in hospitals and health facilities without them.
Donation of one-off life support and care equipment to hospitals and health facilities in rural areas.
Donates hospital consumables specifically for neonates such as needles, cannulas, nasal prongs, masks etc to beneficiary units.
Donates other non-critical equipment such as weighing scales, pulse oximeters, thermometers, televisions, washing machines, bedding and furnishing etc to beneficiary units.
Parental Support Program
LittleBigSouls provides a great support system to parents of pre-term babies. Care packs with essential everyday items are given to mothers with babies in NICU. Educational material is provided to the mother on what to expect and how to care for her pre-term infant. We provide financial assistance to desperate families, provide care to the mother and have a follow on home care package.
LittleBigSouls makes donations of preemie and baby clothes, preemie and baby diapers and wipes, toiletries, foodstuff etc to mothers and families. Additionally, we provide beds and linen, chairs, television, refrigerator, ceiling fans and DVD players to mother’s hostels and KMC units make the mother’s stay in NICU comfortable.
Medical Training Program
LittleBigSouls runs regular in-hospital trainings locally. The training topics are relevant and NICU cantered and delivered within the units to allow for maximum participation and practical demonstration.
Our local training calendar and sessions are facilitated by our technical training lead who is a neonatal nurse and lactation specialist from the Netherlands.
From 2017 to date, more than 100 NICU nurses, doctors and care team members have been trained each year across five beneficiary units in Ghana.
LittleBigSouls Centres of Excellence
LittleBigSouls NEONATAL CENTERS OF EXCELLENCE
LittleBigSouls have included the creation of LittleBigSouls centres all across the African Region in their medium to long term plans. Our aim is to provide Neonatal Centres of Excellence that adequately and properly care for premature babies in line with advances globally. Land has been procured for the first such centre in Accra
Please reach out if you can help us achieve this great plan
Advocacy and Awareness Program
Awareness is a big part of what we do. There are so many cultural misconceptions about babies born too soon in our region which are unhelpful in helping babies to survive, thrive and grow. We believe strongly that as we share information on prematurity and educate the public, we are able to drive out ignorance on the subject and open up channels that help us find the necessary solutions that benefit precious preemie lives.
The annual LittleBigSouls “Walk for Preemies” which begun in 2011, is the biggest awareness event that LittleBigSouls organises each year.
The walk is a 7km walk through the principal streets of Accra which aims to create awareness of prematurity and its effects and honours the 1 million plus premature babies who die each year. We are joined by members from the prematurity community, celebrities and supporters who help spread awareness.
The Walk is scheduled every year in November as close to World Prematurity Day as possible. Together with our partners across the world, LittleBigSouls calls on everyone to join them to call for more research on prematurity, to persuade governments to make the care for preterm babies a priority and for the public to acknowledge the toll that the unnecessary deaths of premature babies have on our society
We’ve dedicated a lot of man-hours and invested countless resources to this charitable cause, and hope you’ll help us continue this work. See how you can by contacting us below.
Emergency Transportation Program
LittleBigSouls EMERGENCY TRANSPORTATION PROGRAM
The provision and facilitation of emergency transport service to enable pre-term babies born at home, or born in hospitals without NICUs to be transported safely and properly in incubators to a properly equipped and adequately staffed NICU. The reality is that there is no such service. Pre-term babies born at home or in hospitals without NICUs are wrapped up in cloth and put in taxis to make the journey to NICU's. Needless to say, a majority of these vulnerable babies don't make it to the hospitals.
We hope to deliver the first of our fully equipped transport incubators in collaboration with a private health facility in Accra by the first quarter of 2022.
Get Involved!
Every Little Bit Counts
Whatever You Can Spare
Contact Us
LittleBigSouls Charitable Foundation, B837/7 Shiasha Close, North Kaneshie. Accra, GHANA.
+233545808866