Expanding Access to Perinatal Depression Treatment in Kenya Through Automated Psychological Support: Development and...

Area of Science:

• Digital mental health interventions
• Perinatal depression treatment
• Mobile health (mHealth) applications

Background:

• Perinatal depression significantly impacts maternal and child well-being, with many cases untreated in low-resource settings due to a lack of trained professionals.
• Task-sharing models like the Thinking Healthy Program show promise but face scale-up barriers.
• The Healthy Moms intervention adapts Thinking Healthy for automated delivery via a mobile phone using an AI system (Tess/Zuri).

Purpose of the Study:

• To gather preliminary data on the Healthy Moms perinatal depression intervention.
• To inform the development and testing of a more robust service.
• To assess the feasibility, acceptability, and preliminary efficacy of an AI-driven mobile health intervention for perinatal depression.

Main Methods:

• A single-case experimental design was employed with pregnant women and new mothers in Kenya.
• Participants completed automated SMS screening for eligibility and were randomized to a baseline period.
• Mood was tracked via SMS, and engagement was assessed through system logs and interviews.

Main Results:

• Of 647 invited, 41 women enrolled; 76% submitted mood ratings and 66% messaged Zuri.
• 34% engaged beyond registration, averaging 3.4 sessions started and 3.1 completed.
• Most users reported positive attitudes, trust, and attributed positive life changes to the intervention, with an estimated 7% mood improvement.

Conclusions:

• The Healthy Moms intervention, delivered via SMS using Zuri, is feasible and acceptable for pregnant women and new mothers.
• This prepilot study provides a crucial baseline for future research on recruitment, data collection, and outcomes.
• Automated, AI-driven interventions show potential for expanding access to perinatal mental health support in low-resource settings.