Support-Moms: a mobile health tool to help pregnant women access care in Uganda
Official title: Integration of a patient-centered mobile health intervention (Support-Moms) into routine antenatal care to improve maternal health in Uganda
Funded at Mbarara University/science/ Technology · NIH-11384767 · Data updated 2026-11-12
A smartphone-ready mHealth program sends scheduled messages and social support to pregnant women in rural Uganda to help them use maternity services.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Mbarara University/science/ Technology NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Mbarara, Uganda) |
| Project start | September 5, 2023 |
| Project end | August 31, 2028 |
| Funding year | 2026 |
| Award (this year) | $493,611 |
| NIH project number | 5R01HD111692-04 |
| Project ID | NIH-11384767 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Pregnant women in rural Uganda who are using or have access to mobile phones and encouragement to attend antenatal and delivery care services.
✕Less likely to help
Women without reliable mobile access or who do not engage with messaging support may see limited benefit.
What this research studies
This project builds a patient-centered mobile health app called Support-Moms to remind and guide pregnant women to attend antenatal care and access skilled birth services in rural Uganda. It uses a mix of SMS, voice messages, and social support features to improve connection with health services and information. The goal is to understand how feasible, acceptable, and affordable this approach is for real-world use and potential scale-up.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, the program could help more pregnant women in remote areas access timely care and improve maternal and perinatal health outcomes.
How similar studies have gone: Previous pilots showed promise, but robust effectiveness data and cost information for scaling are still needed.
Where this research is happening
-
Mbarara University/science/ Technology
Mbarara, Uganda Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Atukunda, Esther Cathyln — Mbarara University/science/ Technology
- Study coordinator: Atukunda, Esther Cathyln
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About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page.