Maternal and child health education
Education and information for healthy pregnancies and healthy newborns
We strengthen the capacity of healthcare professionals with maternal health education, enabling them to provide quality and respectful maternal and newborn care services. Moreover, we educate women via the LUCY maternal and neonatal health app so that they can have an informed and healthy pregnancy and a healthy newborn. LUCY reinforces the healthcare professionals’ message and functions as a continuous information source in between antenatal and postnatal care visits. The combination of health education for healthcare professionals and LUCY for community members increases the quality of health services and helps community members to use the health system in a more mindful and efficient way.
Training for healthcare professionals
The WHO estimates that 7,000 newborns and 810 women die due to preventable pregnancy-related causes every day.
With tailored maternal and child health courses, such as , and , we provide continuous professional health education on pregnancy and prenatal care for healthcare professionals working in the field of maternal and newborn health. Our courses are designed for midwives, nurses, gynecologists, obstetricians, general practitioners, and health officers, particularly for those who are working in resource-restricted settings. By strengthening their knowledge and capacity with health education on newborn care and neonatal courses, we aim to reduce maternal and newborn morbidity and mortality rates.
Our courses are delivered via a blended learning approach, consisting of a combination of face-to-face workshops and a self-study period with e-learning modules. E-learning modules are hosted on Health[e]Foundation’s Moodle learning platform and are available online and – after an initial download – offline without the use of internet. Course content is adapted so that it covers country-context issues and key topics that meet the specific needs of our training participants. Our maternal and child health courses focus on key topics, including pregnancy and childbirth, and the major causes of maternal and newborn complications, morbidity, and deaths.
“I wanted to help mothers, in the same way that I would have wanted my mother to be helped”
-Amanuel Tebabal Nega, Ethiopia
LUCY pregnancy and baby app
LUCY is a smartphone application (app) for pregnant women and the parents of newborns, which informs them about how to have a healthy pregnancy and to ensure that their babies have a good start in life. LUCY aims to reduce maternal and neonatal morbidity and mortality by supporting women and parents during the most exciting, but also insecure, time of their lives, and empowers them to make informed decisions about their own health and the health of their baby. The app is free to use and can be downloaded by Android and Apple (basic) smartphone users.
As part of our maternal and child health programs, we develop and adapt the LUCY app to provide country specific health information. The app content is developed by international medical professionals, such as gynecologists, midwives, and pediatricians, and is in line with national guidelines and standards. Endorsement of the LUCY app by trained maternal and neonatal healthcare professionals increases the uptake of the LUCY app. The app provides clients with key information in between their antenatal and postnatal care visits.
“I am forever grateful to LUCY for making my first pregnancy a pleasant experience”
-Rahel Abera, Ethiopia
