The Baby Has to Make It

When Simati was a little girl growing up in western Kenya, there was a child in her village who was always sick.

She didn’t know why at the time. She only knew the little girl suffered, and that her family struggled to find money for treatment.

Watching that stayed with her, and she later learned the little girl had sickle cell disease.

“God,” she remembers praying, “if I grow up, I just want to be somewhere in healthcare. And if possible, somewhere with children.”

Today, Simati works in Kapsowar’s newborn and pediatric unit, caring for some of the hospital’s smallest and sickest patients.

And thanks to our Friends of Kapsowar supporters, she’s able to be here, her salary fully funded through donor support!

Simati was hired this year thanks to the support of Friends of Kapsowar donors.

Simati learns a new procedure alongside Dr. Jack, nurse Mary, and an observing nursing student as they place an umbilical line in a 25-week premature infant.

While Dr. Jack works across both the newborn unit and the pediatric ward, caring for some of the hospital’s sickest children, Simati helps carry the day-to-day responsibility of the newborn unit. She follows up on lab results, adjusts treatment plans, supports mothers, and ensures dozens of babies receive the consistent, attentive care they need each day.

But she doesn’t just care for babies.

The newborn unit is full of mothers, many of them exhausted, frightened, and far from home. Some spend weeks or even months at the hospital while their babies grow strong enough to leave.

“I just want them to smile,” Simati says. “If there is a song I can sing, or a joke I can make, I will do it.”

She spends time sitting with mothers after rounds, answering questions, explaining feeding plans, and making it safe to ask for help. By the end of many conversations, she says, they’re usually laughing together.

Many of the mothers in our newborn unit are young and far from home, suddenly navigating a world of feeding schedules, medical equipment, and constant worry. Simati spends time teaching and patiently walking alongside them—helping them adjust to life in the NBU.

In a busy newborn unit, a single nurse may be responsible for as many as ten babies at a time. As a clinical officer, Simati has become an invaluable part of the team—helping lighten the daily workload and ensuring babies receive the attention they need.

One of the things that has surprised her most is seeing what can happen when babies receive the right care.

“From my experience at my previous job, I used to think that if a baby came from the womb not breathing, not moving—that was it,” she told me. “But here, the baby has to make it. And they do.”

She still thinks about a baby named Natalia.

Born at just 27 weeks and weighing only 1.8lbs, Natalia spent 73 days in the newborn unit battling apnea, jaundice, and feeding challenges. Simati cared for her from the very beginning.

Then one day, Natalia and her mom went home.

“I saw her from the beginning to the end,” Simati said. “And I’m so happy. It makes me feel like, ‘Oh God, we did this.’”

When Simati first arrived in the newborn unit, she had never cared for babies weighing less than 1,000 grams (2.2lbs).

Now, some of her favorite moments are seeing those same tiny babies grow stronger and watching worried mothers begin to smile.

Simati is here today because people chose to invest in her.

Funding a clinical officer like Simati—similar to a physician assistant in the U.S.—costs $275 per month.

Her presence doesn’t just impact the babies and mothers she sees each day. It strengthens the entire care team, allowing the hospital to serve more patients and ensuring doctors can focus their attention where it is needed most.

If you’d like to continue your impact in Kapsowar, consider becoming a monthly supporter.

Right now, every new monthly gift is matched 100% by a generous donor, doubling your impact for as long as you give.

Even a small monthly gift helps ensure that healthcare workers like Simati can continue caring for children like Natalia every day.

Because behind every story like little Natalia’s is someone like Simati—and someone like you who made it possible.