Zakeez, Inc. is the ergonomics and human factors company that specializes in the research and development of innovative and unique products and services that not only improve the quality of life of children, but that help parents and babies feel closer to each other.
Our company was founded in 2001 by Yamile Jackson (PhD in ergonomics and human factors engineering and licensed professional engineer) using her own personal experience, work and education to invent the Zaky, the first product patented by Zakeez, Inc. In the Fall of 2009 we introduced the Kangaroo Zak that facilitates Kangaroo Mother Care (KMC) in a safe, effective, and comfortable manner.
The Story Behind Zakeez, Inc.
Zachary (my son) was born prematurely weighing less than 2 lbs. Three weeks later, Tropical Storm Allison flooded Houston and shut down the hospital and all equipment, water, phones, etc. For 9 hours Zachary was kept alive "by hand": I kangarooed him while Larry and the nurses took turns "bagging" him (helping him breath.) He survived the most incredible odds while he was hospitalized for 155 nights.
The first lesson from the nurses was how to use my hands to comfort him. How to hold him, how to touch him to give him boundaries (not rubbing or patting, just with my hands still). I was in the NICU for at least 10 hours everydayl but my agony was to leave him for 14 hours at night -- who would comfort him when he was hurting? would he feel that I wasn't there? Does he know that I am his mother?
I told my husband many times that I wished I could cut-off my hand to leave with Zachary my touch, warmth, scent, and my ability to comfort him - so I invented “The Zaky®” for my own son. I made several and Larry and I would sleep with them to give them our scent. The benefits of using this "glove" for Zachary could be easily seen in the monitors, however, what surprised me was that it helped me with my feelings of impotence and separation anxiety from leaving my fragile son alone in a hospital.
During our stay in the NICU (Neonatal Intensive Care Unit), and having been in two hospitals (one where he was born and the other where we were evacuated due to the flood), I noticed many items that had a plaque that read "Donated to __ in Memory of (a name of a baby)" and I thought it was sad that a baby had to die for that item to be there. I did not see any items that were donated "On Behalf Of ___", other than a couple of books. I prayed so hard and for so long, to be given the opportunity to help babies on Zachary's BEHALF and not in his MEMORY. All I wanted was Zachary to survive - no other conditions -- just to be able to take him home and be his mom.
Finally we went home, and he was still a fragile baby. It was my time to pay my promise. I started brainstorming with family and friends about how to help babies. The first thing that came to mind was to volunteer, but that had to wait because I had a sick baby at home. I had no experience with babies other than my own since I had spent the last 12 years in the engineering and construction industry. It was going to be a challenge!
Two weeks after Zachary's discharge from the hospital, the developmental coordinator of the NICU called and requested if I could make the "little hands" I made for Zachary for the rest of the babies in the NICU and my mom and I did! That was the "AHA" moment where I knew what I could do to help. I spent the next three years doing research and improvement of the 'home made" Zaky that I made for her baby while enjoying being Zachary's mom and see how he was a normal and healthy boy.
The Zaky for Healthy Babies:
The Zaky was being used in NICUs and nurses wanted it for their own babies at home and for gifts to their friends, so we started retail in 2004. I realized that the anxiety of a mom leaving a healthy baby is somehow comparable to what I felt leaving my son in the hospital. Moreover, healthy babies also need positioning and the feeling of protection that parents give them, so the Zaky works seamlessly with preemies and newborns.
Now The Zaky is used in every hospital unit with children, in child-care facilities, in homes, and in thousands of homes where babies and children need comfort and being around mom/dad.
The Zaky for Special Needs Children:
About 5 years after we started using the Zaky in NICUs, I received a couple of emails from moms that told me that their children were in the NICU and had the opportunity to use their Zakys. Their babies unfortunately had some disabilities and the Zakys still comfort them a lot! Children like the weight, the scent of mom, and holding the fingers of the Zaky.
The Zaky for End-of-Life / Palliative Care:
I was introduced to this sensitive subject when nurses and moms were telling me that families want to keep the Zakys that their babies used in the NICU. Some moms choose to sleep with the Zaky and feel their baby's scent, others decide to bury it with the baby signifying that a piece of the parents is always going to be with their child. My heart goes to all the families of babies that don't make it - I work very hard to be able to help them in any way I can. Many parents tell me that they are not comfortable with the clothes available for their babies so we are developing a line of bereavement clothing - Every mom and dad should be able to dress their baby in beautiful clothes at their good-bye.
Kangaroo Mother Care (KMC) tool: The Kangaroo Zak:
Very soon after finalizing the development of The Zaky, I wanted to start developing my second product and it was not very difficult to select. Since The Zaky came out of the most traumatic and sad times in the NICU, I wanted my next product to come from the happiest and most intimate times I had with my son: when I was holding him skin-to-skin.
I always start with my own experience and seeing what I did not like about the way I had to do it:
-- I could not move a lot thinking that Zachary was going to hurt or wake up - I wanted to fix this problem because if we want moms and dads to hold a lot, we need to give them the right tools where they are comfortable and can hold for a long time.
-- The most relaxing time for me during those 5 months was when I was holding Zachary. I enjoyed having him so close, being able to do something for him, and these caused my adrenaline to go away for a while. I really wanted to fall asleep and I did many times) but nurses did not want me to sleep when I was holding for the risk of dropping the baby - I FIXED THAT with the Kangaroo Zak because there is no better sleep than when you can do it with your baby in the NICU and the Kangaroo Zak makes it safe to rest.
-- It was impossible to do anything else. I'd have enjoyed being able to read a book or a magazine, write some notes or letters, or even watch a movie but both hands were holding Zachary - Now, with the Kangaroo Zak, moms can hold hands-free!
I travelled to Colombia, (my own country and where KMC was invented) to learn more about KMC, and did a lot of research about what is used around the world and I designed the Kangaroo Zak taking into consideration the practice and need of KMC in the USA.
And.... after years of research and development, I introduced The Kangaroo Zak to facilitate holding babies skin to skin. To realize the benefits of KMC, parents should hold their babies as much as possible: preemies until their due date, and healthy babies in the first couple of weeks of life. The Kangaroo Zak is already being used in important NICUs, Labor and Delivery Units, and homes around the world.
Our next products:
We are already working on the design of beautiful clothing for NICU babies and the sensitive subject of bereavements. Stay tuned!
Our company and Zachary's story have been featured in the Reader's Digest Magazine, the Rachel Ray Show, TV/Radio health and medical reports, newspapers, magazines, and even a movie – We have won 11 awards! Visit our Media Coverage to learn more.