Naya Ellis is One in every of PEOPLE’s Women Altering the World in 2024

When Naya Ellis’s grandmother had a stroke, no one realized what was occurring on the time.

“I see how she lives on daily basis, having [had] a stroke,” says Ellis, 15-year-old highschool sophomore from New Orleans. “It brought on her to develop into disabled. Figuring out you can catch that earlier than that occurs, it may change another person’s life.”

As a part of the STEM NOLA Fellows program, she designed an early stroke detection watched referred to as Wingitt.

“We needed to create a real-life answer to a real-life drawback,” says Ellis, who was named one in every of PEOPLE’s Women Altering the World in 2024.

The watch design is patent-pending, and the aim is to make it extra reasonably priced and in addition extra elder-friendly than a typical sensible watch. The watch sensors will detect indicators of a stroke — coronary heart price, oxygen ranges, feelings and modifications in speech patterns — and get in touch with relations and emergency medical personnel if threat elements are detected.

“That method, if you’re going right into a stroke, earlier than you already know, they will know,” she says, “It may additionally alert your emergency companies, to allow them to be on the way in which to you so you will get the aid you want.”

Her grandmother’s stroke occurred earlier than Ellis was born, however she has seen the restricted motion in a single hand that has resulted. “It’s unhappy as a result of she will’t do all the pieces,” says Ellis, “however she tries her finest.”

Ellis cannot flip again time and stop her grandmother’s stroke, or undo its lasting harm, however maybe the WingItt, which is able to subsequent enter the prototyping part, may catch the subsequent one, or save another person’s grandparent.

“I’m making [WingItt] to assist lower-income folks,” she says. “It gained’t be for everyone. However the folks it may possibly assist? That’s what issues.”

Ellis, who was just lately chosen as one of many champions of the Nationwide STEM Problem, is the youngest of six kids. Her mom was identified with breast most cancers when she was in elementary college. After serving to take care of her, she determined she wished to develop into a doctor.

“I really feel like if I may assist different ladies, that is altering the world,” she says. “I need to change the world by uplifting different ladies and saving lives.”

“I am altering the world and I am not even that previous but,” she continues. “[It shows] you are able to something at [any] age.”