At PATH, we use MacGyver-worthy ingenuity to turn everyday objects into lifesavers for women and children in the world’s poorest places.
We passionately believe that survival shouldn’t depend on where a person lives, how reliable their electrical grid is, or whether they can afford health care. So, we work with partners to boil down sophisticated technologies to their essence, creating easy-to-use, affordable alternatives designed specifically for low-resource settings.
Here’s a peek at some of the ordinary objects PATH uses in extraordinary ways to save lives:
1. Bike pump
Administering medication or other fluid into the bloodstream through an infusion pump is the only effective treatment for many conditions, including some infections in newborns.
2. Mouthwash
PATH is leading a movement to get a new, very strong formulation of chlorhexidine—an antiseptic found in mouthwashes and surgical washes—to health workers and others who support women during childbirth.
3. Water bottle
A length of inexpensive tubing, a water bottle, a custom-designed oxygen mixer, and a few other components snap together quickly to blow a mixture of oxygen and air into the lungs of preemies and other newborns with fragile lungs.
4. Car battery
The MSR SE200™ Community Chlorine Maker, developed by PATH and Mountain Safety Research (MSR), uses a 12-volt vehicle battery to convert a handful of salt and small amount of water into enough chlorine to make up to 55 gallons of water that’s safe to drin
5. Salt
6. Balloon
Severe bleeding after childbirth is the leading cause of maternal death and disability. Ninety-nine percent of these deaths occur in low-resource settings, mainly in sub-Saharan Africa—and most could be prevented with emergency obstetric care.
7. Cell phone
In 2015 alone, an estimated 2.8 million people in India became sick from tuberculosis. PATH is coordinating a network of private-sector providers in Mumbai’s slums to ensure as many patients as possible get timely diagnosis and treatment. Those who opt in
Some of these simple, brilliant tools are already on the market and in the field; others are still in our pipeline—along with dozens more. It takes time—and money—to get these lifesaving solutions to the people who need them.
That’s why we need your help. When you make a gift to PATH, you fuel creativity and collaboration that make life healthier for women and children around the world. Your support is crucial–please give to PATH today.
MSR SE200 is a registered trademark of Mountain Safety Research, a Division of Cascade Designs, Inc.