Promotion of Early Childhood Development Using mHealth: Learnings From an Implementation Experience in Haryana

Pregnancy and the early years of life (0-3 years) are of crucial importance for a child's survival, health, growth and development. Improving care for young children is now considered fundamental to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals by 2030. With support from WHO and Intervida (an international non-governmental organization), implementation on care for early childhood development was carried out by Survival for Women and Children Foundation in 100 villages in Haryana, India. In addition to the implementation of evidence-based interventions, mHealth (phone message (SMS) and phone call) was used as a complementary strategy. The intention was to promote self-care, increase coverage, and improve inter-sectoral collaboration. One message per day was developed (915 messages) and 1564630 SMS were sent to all beneficiaries and providers to facilitate interaction. Based on learnings, the consolidation of this approach into 46 core themes helped to refine interactions. Lot Quality Assurance Sampling was used for evaluation. SMS was received, read and practiced by the caregivers and the care providers in the intervention block, being substantially higher than in the control blocks. There was a remarkable improvement in under-nutrition and wasting; however, the reduction in stunting was modest in the intervention area as compared with two control blocks. This is attributed to implementation of all strategies in the project including the complementary approach of use of mHealth. The application of SMS and phone communication continues to have relevance, since people most in need are poor and require integrated package of services maximally during this crucial period for improving equity and coverage.