Be Healthy, Be Mobile country programmes

The Be He@lthy, Be Mobile (BHBM) initiative now works with 11 countries from a range of regions and income levels, tackling issues as diverse as raising awareness on cervical cancer to helping people quit tobacco use. As of June 2018, programmes have fully launched in India, Philippines, Senegal, Zambia, Tunisia, Egypt and Costa Rica and are in preparatory phase in Sudan and Burkina Faso. Each country implements a different intervention or a combination of interventions, depending on the need and political will behind each disease or risk factor. Topics include raising awareness around diabetes and cervical cancer, as well as reducing risk factors such as tobacco use, healthy eating & physical activity.

Countries that are implementing BHBM programmes:

  • Burkina Faso - mTobaccoCessation
  • Costa Rica (no longer active) - mTobaccoCessation
  • Egypt - mDiabetes, mTB-Tobacco
  • India - mTobaccoCessation, mDiabetes
  • Norway – strategic support
  • Philippines - mTobaccoCessation
  • Senegal - mDiabetes
  • Sudan - mCervicalCancer, mBreastCancer, mDiabetes
  • Tunisia - mTobaccoCessation, mDiabetes
  • United Kingdom - strategic support
  • Zambia - mCervicalCancer

Reach

  • More than 3.5 million people have received messages through BHBM programmes.
  • Over 2.1 million people are registered in India’s mTobaccoCessation service, while the country’s mDiabetes programme has sent over 8.5 million messages to subscribers.
  • More than 50,000 people are enrolled in Tunisia’s mTobaccoCessation service.
  • Senegal has enrolled hundreds of thousands of people over five years in its annual campaign to send SMS messages on diabetes during Ramadan.
  • Tunisia and Egypt have begun implementing their own mRamadan campaigns in recent years.
  • Zambia has used their mHealth system to send 500,000 people messages on cervical cancer awareness.

Results

The effects of each intervention are measured through a monitoring and evaluation plan. The process includes collecting real time data on the number of subscribers, the number of messages sent or received, and the performance of the technology platform itself. Periodically, impact evaluations are carried out by independent researchers to confirm that the evidence-based programmes are having the same effects on awareness and behavior change that are expected. In India, the evaluation showed a 19% quit rate amongst participants in the mTobaccoCessation programme. Zambia’s mCervicalCancer programme resulted in a 6% increase in cervical cancer screenings. In Senegal, the mDiabetes programme was associated with improved glycemic control among subscribers who received text messages to help them manage their disease.

India

mTobaccoCessation - India launched its mTobaccoCessation programme in January 2016 and has so far registered over 2.4 million users. The service is available in all 29 states and in two different languages (English and Hindi). 75% of respondents reported that the programme was helpful in quitting tobacco use. mDiabetes – 100,000 users have registered for mDiabetes since its launch in July 2016. The service is available for specific target groups such as pregnant women, the elderly and people with a high risk of developing type 2 diabetes. 56% of participants felt this programme improved their knowledge about diabetes and healthy lifestyle, while 64% of users shared test messages with their friends and relatives.

Tunisia (mTobaccoCessation)

In 2015, the Government of Tunisia announced its commitment to create a national mCessation programme to help reduce tobacco use amongst adults and adolescents, with a special focus on younger users. A soft launch and user testing took place throughout 2016 and 2017. In December 2017, the programme was launched with a new name: “Yakfi” (‘Enough!’ in traditional Arabic). 50,000 users are currently enrolled. An extension of the programme to cover diabetes is also under development, with support from the World Diabetes Foundation.

Egypt (mDiabetes)

Egypt has implemented the mRamadan module as part of its mDiabetes programme for two years, sending 16 million SMS to people who signed up or their relatives (if this was requested). 59% of users showed an average decrease of 0.45% in their HbA1c levels (pre- and post-intervention). HbA1c indicates the average blood glucose stability over time. About 70% of participants found the service useful and hoped it would continue. 6% of respondents who had enrolled in the programme reported after 6 months that they had not used tobacco in the last 30 days at the time of reporting.

Senegal (mDiabetes)

Senegal has run annual mRamadan campaigns since 2014, most recently in 2018 with approximately 180,000 subscribers. The mDiabetes programme in Senegal also consists of several shorter campaigns for different audiences (e.g. health worker training, women with diabetes). The programme also ran an emergency SMS-based Ebola prevention programme in September 2014, using the same infrastructure as the mDiabetes service.

Zambia (mCervicalCancer)

Zambia’s mCervicalCancer service, launched in October 2016, provides information on cervical cancer symptoms, the importance of screening to avoid the condition, and information on accessing local clinics. Since the launch, the programme has reached over half a million people and cervical cancer screening rates have increased by about 6%, based on preliminary results from 10 screening sites in Lusaka. The Ministry of Health is aiming to develop the mCervicalCancer programme as part of a continuum of care for cervical cancer. This means looking at additional features that will make it easier for women to access screening and treatment, such as appointment reminders and follow-up after screening. Since 2016 the programme has received funding support from the African Development Bank.

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