How Isabelle Furaha is changing survival for preterm babies in Uganda

Every week, Isabelle Furaha leads a team of volunteers moving between hospital wards and homes across Uganda, following up on some of the country’s most fragile lives “premature babies” who have survived birth, but remain at risk.

Under her leadership, the team teaches mothers how to keep their babies warm, monitors feeding, and checks for infections. In many cases, their intervention becomes the difference between survival and loss.

Furaha is the founder of Mama Tulia Ministries, a Uganda-based organisation focused on supporting mothers and newborns during the critical transition from hospital to home.

Her work has now gained global recognition. This week, she received the Innovation and Collaboration Award at the Global Foundation for Care of Newborn (GFCNI) Summit in Germany.

While the award was presented to her, Furaha is quick to point to the team behind the work.

“Our work has always been about collaboration,” she said. “From our staff to volunteers and partners, this recognition belongs to everyone involved in supporting these families.”

In Uganda, many premature babies survive neonatal intensive care but face significant risks after discharge. Infection, poor home environments, and limited caregiver knowledge continue to threaten their survival, gaps that Furaha set out to address through a continuum-of-care model.

Through Mama Tulia, mothers receive support before discharge, are followed up at home, and access specialised interventions including screening and treatment for Retinopathy of Prematurity (ROP), a condition that can lead to blindness if not detected early.

Over the years, Furaha’s model has reached more than 10,700 mothers and babies, conducted over 7,600 home visits, and strengthened care through more than 500 hospital engagements.

The impact is particularly evident in ROP care. More than 2,000 babies have been screened, with 262 diagnosed and 243 successfully treated, preventing avoidable blindness.

Earlier this year, Furaha expanded the initiative with the launch of the Tulia  Tender Nest Transition Home, a facility designed to stabilise high-risk mothers and babies before they return to their communities. Since February, it has supported over 20 mothers and 24 babies.

Her work also tackles the social realities affecting newborn survival. The organisation has distributed more than 200 water filters to vulnerable households and provides psychosocial support, including programs for teenage mothers and efforts to involve fathers in newborn care.

Health experts say such integrated, community-based approaches are essential in improving outcomes for preterm babies, particularly in low-resource settings where post-hospital care remains limited.