ReviewBMJ global health2018
Mobile health messaging service and helpdesk for South African mothers (MomConnect): history, successes and challenges.
Review in BMJ global health, 2018. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 62 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
62 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.
- A systematic review of health communication strategies in Sub-Saharan Africa-2015-2022.Health promotion perspectives · 2023Pooled it
- Health workers' perceptions and experiences of using mHealth technologies to deliver primary healthcare services: a qualitative evidence synthesis.The Cochrane database of systematic reviews · 2020Pooled it
- A Tailored mHealth Intervention for Improving Antenatal Care Seeking and Its Determinants Among Pregnant Adolescent Girls and Young Women in South Africa: Pilot Randomized Controlled Trial.JMIR mHealth and uHealth · 2025Trial
- The impact of interactive text communication on neonatal mortality in Kenya: a randomized controlled trial.Nature medicine · 2025Trial
- Effect of Short, Animated Video Storytelling on Maternal Knowledge and Satisfaction in the Perinatal Period in South Africa: Randomized Controlled Trial.Journal of medical Internet research · 2023Trial
- The impact of a direct to beneficiary mobile communication program on reproductive and child health outcomes: a randomised controlled trial in India.BMJ global health · 2022Trial
- Impact of SMS and peer navigation on retention in HIV care among adults in South Africa: results of a three-arm cluster randomized controlled trial.Journal of the International AIDS Society · 2021Trial
- Cultural Authority and Food Choices: How Intergenerational Power Shapes Maternal Diet in Rural South Africa.Current developments in nutrition · 2026Article
- Intersecting Vulnerabilities: Depression, Suicidality, and HIV Risk Among Young Mothers in South Africa.AIDS and behavior · 2026Article
- Observational
- Scaling Smart: The Potential of Digital Strategies to Promote Breastfeeding in Low- and Middle-Income Countries.Maternal & child nutrition · 2026Article
- Compounding, not adding: a layered framework for why maternal health programs gain coverage without saving lives.Frontiers in global women's health · 2026Article
- Digital therapeutics for stress in health science students at under-resourced universities: A narrative review.Health SA = SA Gesondheid · 2026Review
- Shesha, a WhatsApp Chatbot for Linking Household Contacts to Tuberculosis Treatment or Preventive Therapy in South Africa: Design and Development.JMIR formative research · 2025Article
- The Effectiveness of an Artificial Intelligence-Based Gamified Intervention for Improving Maternal Health Outcomes Among Refugees and Underserved Women in Lebanon: Community Interventional Trial.JMIR mHealth and uHealth · 2025Article
- Access to digital media and devices among adolescents in sub-Saharan Africa: A multicountry, school-based survey.Maternal & child nutrition · 2025Article
- Evaluating the digital health technology landscape in sub-Saharan Africa and its implications for cardiovascular health.NPJ cardiovascular health · 2025Review
- A scoping review of digital technologies in antenatal care: recent progress and applications of digital technologies.BMC pregnancy and childbirth · 2025Article
- Self-Guided Smartphone App (Vimbo) for the Reduction of Symptoms of Depression and Anxiety in South African Adults: Pilot Quantitative Single-Arm Study.JMIR formative research · 2025Article
- Digital tools for youth health promotion: principles, policies and practices in sub-Saharan Africa.Health promotion international · 2024Article
2 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
9 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
MomConnect is a flagship programme of the South African National Department of Health that has reached over 1.5 million pregnant women. Using mobile technology, MomConnect provides pregnant and postpartum women with twice-weekly health information text messages as well as access to a helpdesk for patient queries and feedback. In just 3 years, MomConnect has been taken to scale to reach over 95% of public health facilities and has reached 63% of all pregnant women attending their first antenatal appointment. The helpdesk has received over 300 000 queries at an average of 250 per day from 6% of MomConnect users. The service is entirely free to its users. The rapid deployment of MomConnect has been facilitated by strong government leadership, and an ecosystem of mobile health implementers who had experience of much of the content and technology required. An early decision to design MomConnect for universal coverage has required the use of text-based technologies (short messaging service and Unstructured Supplementary Service Data) that are accessible via even the most basic mobile phones, but cumbersome to use and costly at scale. Unlike previous mobile messaging services in South Africa, MomConnect collects the user's identification number and facility code during registration, enabling future linkages with other health and population databases and geolocated feedback. MomConnect has catalysed additional efforts to strengthen South Africa's digital health architecture. The rapid growth in smartphone penetration presents new opportunities to reduce costs, increase real-time data collection and expand the reach and scope of MomConnect to serve health workers and other patient groups.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.