The Incubator Global Neonatal Podcast

#029 - Scaling Newborn Care in Ghana: Telemedicine, Caffeine, and the Power of Collaboration

In this episode, Mbozu and Shelly-Ann sit down with Dr. Naana Wireko Brobby, a neonatologist leading national efforts to strengthen newborn care in Ghana. She shares a grounded view of daily life at Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital, where high patient volumes, resource constraints, and continuous teaching shape clinical work. The conversation traces her journey into neonatology, then moves into system-level change: building a national retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) telemedicine program, introducing caffeine citrate for apnea of prematurity, and advancing kangaroo mother care (KMC). Throughout, she highlights practical lessons on leadership, collaboration, and starting before conditions are perfect.  Connect with Dr. Naana Ayiwa Wireko Brobby : Contact Form [https://tally.so/r/gDvaxJ]

#028 - Family Systems Care: An example from Hohoe, Ghana (ft. Christina Schuler, Jessica Honya-Tsiewu, and George Edward Ntow)

In this episode, we explore a decade-long journey to transform newborn care in Ghana's Hohoe region, focusing on family systems of care, cross-cultural research collaborations, and innovative training approaches. In this episode we explore  •The healthcare landscape for small and sick newborns in Ghana's Volta region •The concept and application of family systems care versus family-centered care •Development and adaptation of practical tools like genograms and echo maps for local    contexts •Training healthcare providers in communication and relationship-building with families •Case studies of integrating family involvement into neonatal care and outcomes •The journey of collaborative research between colleagues Resources mentioned in episode: 1.  Families' Perception of Cognitive and Emotional Support From Healthcare Professionals Across the Maternal and Newborn Care Continuum https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/41546394/ [https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/41546394/] 2. Family systems care approaches and methodologies for maternal, newborn and child health in low- and middle-income countries: a scoping review https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC12529736/ [https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC12529736/] 3. Experiences of families and health professionals along the care continuum for low-birth weight neonates: A constructivist grounded theory study https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/jan.15566 Contact George Edward Ntow LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/in/george-edward-ntow-5550bb126/] Christina Schuler LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/in/christina-schuler-86a7b6136/] Jessica Honya-Tsiewu Linkedin [https://www.linkedin.com/in/jessica-honya-tsiewu-450966b3/]

#027 - A Preemie, Her Pediatrician, and 40 Years of Neonatal Care in St. Vincent and the Grenadines (SVG)

In this episode, Mbozu and Shelly-Ann sit down with Dr. Bharati Datta and Dr. Josel Doyle for a conversation that spans four decades and one very full circle moment. Over 40 years ago, Dr. Datta arrived in St. Vincent and the Grenadines from India as the only pediatrician on the island. One of the tiny preterm babies she cared for, weighing barely over a pound at discharge, grew up to become a neonatologist herself. That baby is Dr. Doyle. Together we explore, Dr. Datta’s journey where she shares what it took to build neonatal care from almost nothing: from working with administration, to working with the mothers who became the original NICU staff,  working towards the Eastern Caribbean's first Baby-Friendly Hospital designation, and the hard-won lessons about ownership, resourcefulness, and community that every clinician working in a low-resource setting needs to hear.

#026 - How a Parent Charity Transformed Neonatal Care in Barbados

In this episode, Shelly-Ann and Mbozu sit down with a few members of the Parents Neonatal Intensive Care Charity affiliated with the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Barbados.  Heidi and Andrew Hutchinson, parents of a baby born at 30 weeks who is now a practicing lawyer, share how they transitioned from frightened NICU parents to decades-long advocates. June Walton and Cheryl Walrond, retired NICU nurses, describe building the first parent education sessions and the culture of care that followed.  What began as a Thursday evening Q&A between overwhelmed parents and NICU nurses in the early 1990s grew into a registered charity that funded system improvements over time. These included  refurbishing  every incubator in the unit, securing  surfactant in the early days before it was on national drug formulary, purchasing a portable X-Ray machine among many other initiatives.

#025 - Leadership in Action: Establishing Neonatal Services in a Regional Hospital

Dr. Naiza Ngowo Monono, the sole pediatrician at Limbe Regional Hospital in Cameroon for nearly a decade, shares how she reduced neonatal mortality to 16 per 1,000—well below the national average. Key interventions included implementing hygiene protocols, training staff on danger sign recognition and neonatal resuscitation, task-shifting responsibilities to nurses and general practitioners, scaling Kangaroo Mother Care, and partnering with UNICEF to train referral hospitals for earlier identification and transfer. Dr. Ngowo Monono emphasizes starting with available resources, building team capacity through mentorship, and maintaining discipline in planning. She advocates for multidisciplinary post-discharge follow-up and improved respiratory care as next priorities for advancing newborn outcomes.