parents used home made incubator to save premature baby's life

On the advice of a doctor, a premature baby boy’s
life was saved after his parents incubated him
inside a polystyrene icebox for five months, Cover
Asia Press reported.
In October 2013, Mithilesh Chauhan was born two
months premature at Alliance Hospital in Mumbai,
India. At birth, he reportedly weighed just 3
pounds 3 ounces and was in need of constant
monitoring as he was prone to infections.
However, Mithilesh’s parents, Aruna and Ramseh
Chauhan, said they could not afford to keep their
son in the hospital’s intensive care unit (ICU).
They claim that they initially paid for their son’s
hospital stay by borrowing money from relatives,
but they soon ran out of people to ask for help.
The new parents then tried reaching out to other
government-run hospitals, but all the ICU waiting
lists were reportedly too long.
Knowing the baby would have to be discharged
soon, the Chauhans claimed that doctors at
Alliance Hospital suggested a cheap – and
unconventional – alternative.
"One doctor told us that if we couldn't afford to
keep our baby in hospital we should try a
Thermocol icebox with holes for ventilation and a
60-watt bulb to provide the right amount of
warmth," Aruna Chauhan, 34, told Cover Asia
Press. "He advised it was better than nothing and
might save our baby. My husband bought the box
from a nearby fish market and cut holes in it."
After 20 days in the ICU, Mithilesh was reportedly
released from the hospital – leaving the icebox as
the Chauhan’s only option. Aruna and Ramseh
claimed they would take him out every two hours
to take his temperature.
"It was awful," Aruna told Cover Asia Press. "We
had no idea if it was the right thing to do, but we
had to try something. We were terrified if we did
nothing he'd die, but we were also aware that what
we were doing wasn't exactly safe either. It was a
very distressing time."
Mithilesh survived after allegedly spending five
months in the icebox – but he remained severely
underweight. He is now reportedly receiving 24-
hour medical care at the Wadia Hospital for
Children, who heard about his condition and
offered to treat him for free.