FIGHTING SICKLE CELL TOGETHER

Voima was founded in 2023 by Emmanuel and a group of young leaders who had personally witnessed the devastating impact of sickle cell disease on their families, friends, and communities. For Emmanuel, the mission was deeply personal. His best friend, Elijah, lived with sickle cell disease. Elijah spent more time in hospitals than in classrooms and passed away before their final Junior High examinations. What stayed with Emmanuel was not only the disease itself, but the burden placed on Elijah to manage it almost entirely on his own, constantly trying to track triggers, avoid crises, and make the “right” decisions while knowing that one mistake could lead to another night of severe pain. His co-founders carried similar experiences of loss, caregiving, and witnessing preventable suffering firsthand. Those experiences exposed a larger problem: too many people living with chronic conditions are forced to navigate complex health challenges without proactive, personalized, or accessible support systems. In Ghana, the team saw how shortages in blood supply, limited crisis prevention tools, gaps in awareness, and stigma worsened outcomes for patients and families. Conversations with clinicians and patients in the United States revealed similar inequities among underserved communities globally.

From these experiences, Voima was born at the intersection of technology, advocacy, and human-centered care. What started as a mission rooted in sickle cell disease has evolved into a broader vision of building proactive and personalized support for people living with chronic conditions helping them better understand their health, anticipate crises earlier, and live healthier, fuller lives.