Mum-of-two, Dora Dyk, is bringing an extremely innovative product to market, which makes giving medicine to babies easier and she's looking for your help.
"After endless times of Calpol spilled all over her and her unwell baby, a mum of 2 sets out to create a product that will make giving medicine easier. Medapti, adapter for baby syringes will be launching in the next few months and is available for pre-order now.
My name is Dora, and I am a mum of two. I came up with the idea when I struggled to give medicine to my children when they were babies. One was on reflux medication for months and I was always worried about hurting his gums with the hard-plastic syringe. My second baby refused to take the medicine altogether. He would clamp his mouth, pull away, cry uncontrollably and the medicine would normally end up all over him, me or the floor. My main worries were that he didn’t swallow enough dose or that while trying to administer his medication, the medicine would shoot straight down his throat and make him choke.
I found various products but some were too messy or difficult to use, some were not suitable for babies that don’t like dummies, some directed the medicine straight down the throat, some were simply ineffective. Every time I looked at my baby’s upset face, I just couldn’t believe that there wasn’t a product to help me! Frustrated, I decided to create one. I started drawing the designs, got the Play-Doh, scissors, and paper out, and started on my journey. I set to create a simple product to make giving medicine to babies easier.
Medapti offers the following benefits:
- Simple - It just slips onto the end of the flat-end oral syringe
- Direct - Helps direct medicine to baby’s cheek, not the centre of baby’s mouth
- Position - Helps keep the syringe in baby’s mouth
- Soft - Soft and gentle on baby’s mouth and gums
- One hand use - You only need one hand to dispense medicine, leaving your other arm free to hold your baby
- Less mess - MEDAPTI reduces spills and leaks, leaving you and your little one mess-free
Medapti is made with a medical grade, non-toxic and BPA-free material.
Fast forward to now, MEDAPTI has gone from my home-made dream to a patented product, gathering interest from many parents, children’s hospitals, including Great Ormond Street Hospital. It has also been featured widely in the British and international media.
MEDAPTI was also chosen as one of the four finalists in the BPA Concept & Innovation Awards 2019 competition.
Due to Covid, production has been in standstill since January but things have finally started moving along in August and the tooling is now finished and the first production run should be done in the next 4 to 5 weeks.
Having been accepted on the NatWest Back Her Business Programme, I am now crowdfunding to enable me to take Medapti to the next level. Here is the link to my crowdfunding page if you'd like to get involved.
I am offering many rewards, including Medapti for pre-order as well as a running a giveaway on my Facebook page, giving a chance to win a Baby Products Hamper worth more than £350, sponsored by other amazing brands created by parents, including: Dribblebuster, Baby Nails, TUM TUM, Mama Designs, Tidy Tot, SweetDreamers, Kokoso, TOTSUP, Shnuggle, SnoozeShade, Babycup, Gummee, Fidget Bum, Tidy Books, Fill n Squeeze, whose support I am incredibly grateful for.
During my journey, there have been many challenges to overcome, many ups and downs but it has been an amazing learning curve and experience. Although it was not easy trying to bring a product to market while still working and being a mum to two boys, I know that it will be worth it and that my invention will help many people. I hope that one day, Medapti will not only be a must-have baby product but also a tool in healthcare market, helping to administer medicine to babies, premature infants, disabled and even elderly."
Dora will be donating a small percentage of her goal to Pyjama Fairies who are the only UK charity to make pyjamas and surgical gowns specially designed for babies and children up to age 16 having surgery or any other associated medical test. Pyjama Fairies mission is to make hospital stays easier for children and their families.
We wish you well Dora and hope it's a great success for you.
