The Problem
Kenya has one of the highest Maternal Mortality Rates in the world at 594 deaths per 100,000 live births. The Neonatal Mortality Rate is also estimated to be 20.4 deaths per 1,000 live births as of 2022, compared with the UN Sustainable Development Goal of 12 per 1,000 live births. It goes without saying that any death of a mother or newborn is one too many – particularly when the solutions exist and the deaths are often preventable.
A major underlying problem is too many mothers and their newborns aren’t getting the eight Antenatal Care (ANC) and four Postnatal Care (PNC) contacts recommended by the World Health Organisation to reduce the risk of stillbirths and pregnancy complications and give women a positive pregnancy experience.
In Kenya overall, only approximately 59% of pregnant women even attend at least four antenatal care visits, with a very small percentage getting the eight recommended. Only around 20% of women attend their first antenatal care visit during the first trimester of pregnancy. After birth, over half of women (approximately 53%) do not receive any form of postnatal care at all, and fewer than one in five women receive postnatal care within 41 days after delivery.
The Solution
Spirit Health Foundation partnered with Dandelion Africa to support the County governments in Baringo, Kajiado, Nakuru, and Narok counties in Kenya to help prevent maternal and neonatal deaths.
This innovative community health solution improves maternal, neonatal, and perinatal mortality outcomes by equipping Health Centres, Sub-Hospitals and Community Health Promoters with the Clinitouch smart platform to provide essential Antenatal and Postnatal Care in mothers’ homes, complementing the existing government digital systems.
The Community Health Promoters use the offline Clinitouch app for monitoring across the mothers’ pregnancies and post birth in the critical 42 day post-partum period. This involves using smart Antenatal and Postnatal monitoring questionnaires, taking clinical reading with supporting Blood Pressure monitors, and maternal health promotion using animated videos and visual aids. All clinical content has been localised to Kenya national guidelines and translated into Swahili.
The smart Clinitouch system generates a risk score for mothers and newborns from every monitoring session, which facility staff remotely review on the Clinitouch clinician portal and take immediate action to provide the care needed based on risks or potential complications.
The Impact
This smart maternal and newborn health initiative was launched in April 2025, and we will share interim results soon.
Of mothers monitored so far for ANC and PNC, over 40% have been identified as ‘at risk’ and referred for vital care.
Find out more
Find out more how Clinitouch can enable remote care in even the hardest-to-reach communities.
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