Smartphone app increases contraceptive use in India
A smartphone app called Gyan Jyoti (or “light of knowledge”) increased the number of women using contraceptives in rural India in just a few months.
The app plays motivational videos aimed to help married rural women in India better understand contraceptive choices. A Johns Hopkins Center for Communication Programs (CCP) research says that women who use the app are 4.5 times more likely to use contraception.
The app was developed by CCP to be used by The app is designed for use by ASHAs, community health workers in India, who visit the homes of rural women to promote family planning and other healthy behaviors. The app incorporates a variety of videos about family planning and modern contraceptive methods, including entertaining and educational films, testimonials from happy couples who are using contraception, Q & A videos with physicians and other information that aims to dispel myths and misconceptions.
The findings, presented at the International Family Planning Conference in Nusa Dua, Indonesia, show that digital technology can be an effective tool to provide customized information and also address cultural and social barriers that may prevent women in low- and middle-income countries from adopting family planning behaviors.
“This study shows that mobile technology provides an innovative and dynamic platform for social and behavior change communication,” says Sanjanthi Velu, PhD, Asia team lead at CCP, which is part of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. “It can encourage conversations between women and frontline health workers that are interactive, culturally relevant, and personalized — and that lead to increased, sustained use of modern contraceptive methods.”
Category: Features, Technology & Devices
