Inspired by the premature birth of her son Zachary, one mom has invented a way to easily comfort NICU babies.
In a video from HuffPost Rise, Dr. Yamile Jackson, CEO and president of Nurtured by Design, discussed her invention called the Zaky. The Zaky is a glove filled with beads that mimics the hand and forearm and provides support and comfort for babies by simulating someone holding them.
“I had a preemie, and I had to leave the hospital,” Jackson said. “Leaving the hospital without a newborn is very difficult.”
To help her son while he was in the NICU, Jackson slept with a stuffed garden glove (the first version of the Zaky) so it would retain her scent and left it in the NICU with Zachary. She told The Huffington Post that a nurse later asked if she could make similar gloves for the other babies in the unit.
According to the Nurtured by Design site, the Zaky provides emotional support especially when moms and dads add their scent to the gloves as well as support for musculoskeletal development.
“The Zakys are your pair of hands that stay with your baby when you are not holding him/her,” the site reads. “They help humanize the care of your baby and reduce morbidity as they help him/her sleep, heal, grow, thus, develop the brain.”
What started out as an invention to soothe Jackson’s son, who is now 13, has turned into a way to put many babies in the NICU at ease. The mom described her work as “a little contribution to a better world for these babies.”