WAAA! The conception and rapid development of a wearable for good technology

Worldwide, 1 million babies die on the day they are born and one third of all births take place without the assistance of a skilled healthcare worker (UNICEF, 2018). This case study describes the conception and development of a Wearable, Anytime, Anywhere, APGAR designed to address neonatal mortality. WAAA! was originally conceived as a part of a six hour academic innovation challenge. The event brought together impromptu teams with the brief to develop an innovation that would address maternal and/or infant wellbeing. The WAAA! team synthesized their disciplinary expertise in design, business, engineering, computer gaming and public health to conceive a soft patch surveillance system that specifically monitored APGAR signs. The WAAA! team became a finalist in
UNICEF’s Wearables for Good challenge. A two-week development and mentoring programme in conjunction with Philips, IDEO, ARM and Apple advanced the raw idea into a comprehensive system, service and product solution consisting of APGAR education materials, a gateway communication unit
and two-part wearable.