Feasible E-Health Strategies to Reduce Maternal Mortality in Kenya

Abstract

Maternal mortality remains a persistent cause of death in Sub-Saharan Africa. Although e-health technologies are rapidly advancing, many technologies are infeasible given the infrastructure constraints and context of Sub-Saharan Africa. This paper proposes and implement a feasible e-health strategy, which involves the use of simple mobile phone technology and was designed to reduce maternal mortality and neonatal rates through information dissemination, among the nomadic people within a select part of Kenya. This strategy was developed, through an interactive pilot study, to determine the most feasible technique, which was found to be SMS messages, and most appropriate customized information depending on the patient's condition and period in pregnancy. A cross-sectional randomized e-health intervention was implemented in order to determine the effectiveness of the intervention. Due to exceptional circumstances, such as a prolonged health strike, this intervention had mixed results but shows promise of both feasibility and effectiveness.