Harnessing mobile technology to deliver evidence-based maternal-infant care

Abstract

mHealth, the use of wireless and portable communication technology to improve the health status of the population, has seen widespread adoption in low- and middle-income countries. It has been used to increase awareness and knowledge of healthcare, to collect health-related data, to deliver healthcare information such as results of investigations or appointment reminders, to aid decision-making by healthcare providers, and to improve communication between various stakeholders of the health system. Developing countries face an immense challenge of periodically updating the professional knowledge of their huge pool of community and facility level healthcare workers. Nearly universal possession of mobile phones, low-cost internet data, and high growth rate of smartphones has facilitated the use of mHealth in delivering evidence-based guidelines and decision-aids to frontline healthcare workers. This review describes the current evidence on the use of mHealth educational interventions targeting maternal and neonatal healthcare providers in low- and middle-income countries. Recent efforts of the National Neonatology Forum of India in integration of mHealth for development and dissemination of clinical practice guidelines are also presented.