Factors motivating maternal healthcare clients to use mHealth interventions in rural Malawi

TL;DR

The study explores why pregnant women in rural Malawi are motivated to use mobile health (mHealth) interventions to improve maternal healthcare access.

Contribution

The study identifies specific factors such as access to borrowed phones, cultural norms suppression, and trust in government information that motivate rural women to use mHealth.

Findings

Women without mobile phones are motivated to use mHealth when they can borrow phones.

Unmarried women use mHealth to seek information without fear of judgment.

Trust in government-provided health information increases mHealth adoption.

Abstract

Client-facing mHealth interventions have the potential to address the inequalities in accessing health information. In maternal healthcare, mHealth interventions provide information to pregnant women on how they can stay healthy during pregnancy, as well as on the danger signs in pregnancy that can contribute to maternal mortality. This study investigated why maternal healthcare clients are motivated to use mHealth interventions. Data was collected using secondary data sources and semi-structured interviews with maternal clients who used Chipatala Cha Pa Foni mHealth intervention. The study found that access to and attitudes towards technology motivated maternal healthcare clients to use the mHealth intervention. Furthermore, women in rural areas were motivated to use mHealth interventions when the technology suppresses social-cultural norms, technology is designed with affordance potency in mind, women have trust in the source of information, and when communities practice the culture of sharing. These findings have the potential to broaden the understanding of what and why beneficiaries of digital health might be motivated to use digital technologies in poor-resource settings.

Mobile health (mHealth) interventions can help reduce inequalities in accessing health information in rural areas, particularly in maternal healthcare. These interventions provide crucial information to pregnant women about how to care for their pregnancies. However, many pregnant women in rural areas face several challenges when accessing mHealth services, such as a lack of mobile phones and the need to travel long distances to access the mobile phone. We investigated the motivations behind pregnant women’s use of mHealth interventions in rural areas using Chipatala Cha Pa Foni mHealth intervention. Our findings revealed that women who do not own mobile phones are encouraged to use these interventions when they have access to a borrowed mobile phone. Additionally, we discovered that pregnant women generally have a positive attitude towards mHealth technology. Moreover, the mHealth intervention allows unmarried women to seek information without fear of judgment, and it enables all pregnant women to consult with male or young doctors without violating cultural norms. The technology is user-friendly and suitable for their literacy levels, and the women trust the health information provided, as it comes from the government.

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