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OpenTrials
Completed

NCT Number: NCT06790069

Evaluating the Impact of a Symptom Checker on Healthcare-seeking Decisions: a Mixed-Methods Study

The goal of this study is to evaluate the integration of a symptom checker (SC) into the MomConnect (MC) platform to support maternal healthcare in South Africa. The main questions it aims to answer are:

* Does the SC provide safe and appropriate medical advice? * Does the SC help mothers make informed decisions about when and where to seek healthcare, saving time and money by avoiding unnecessary visits? * Does the SC improve access to care for those facing significant healthcare barriers?

Participants will answer survey questions before and after using the SC. A subset of participants will also be invited to participate in structured telephone interviews.

The study will help researchers assess the SC's impact on healthcare decisions and resource use in South Africa.

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Key information

Conditions

Maternal Health Care

Age range

18 year and older

Sex eligibility

Female

Study type

Observational

Primary location

Reach Digital Health (formerly Praekelt.org)

Cape Town, South Africa

Who can participate

Healthy volunteers accepted: No

Only the study team can determine whether someone qualifies for participation.

Inclusion criteria

  • Women registered with MomConnect, who would like to assess their or their child's symptoms
  • At least 18 years of age
  • Women with access to WhatsApp
  • Capable of completing a symptom assessment in English

Exclusion criteria

  • Incapable of completing a symptom assessment in English via WhatsApp (e.g. due to illiteracy, language barrier, mental impairment or inebriation or other incapacity or lack of access to WhatsApp)

Treatment and study plan

Primary outcomes

  1. Proportion of appropriate advice by the SC for mother and child

    Time frame: From data collection with participant enrolment to the completion of panel ratings, approximately 2-3 months after participant enrolment.

  2. Proportion of safe advice by the SC for mother and child

    Time frame: From data collection with participant enrolment to the completion of panel ratings, approximately 2-3 months after participant enrolment.

Secondary outcomes

  1. Potential prevention of a health problem in Perinatal Period for Mother or Child

    Time frame: From data collection with participant enrolment to the completion of panel ratings, approximately 2-3 months after participant enrolment.

  2. Potential prevention of a SEVERE health problem in Perinatal Period for Mother or Child

    Time frame: From data collection with participant enrolment to the completion of panel ratings, approximately 2-3 months after participant enrolment.

  3. Potential Occurrence of a health problem (adverse event) in Perinatal Period for Mother and Child

    Time frame: From data collection with participant enrolment to the completion of panel ratings, approximately 2-3 months after participant enrolment.

  4. Potential Occurrence of a SEVERE health problem (severe adverse event) in Perinatal Period for Mother or Child

    Time frame: From data collection with participant enrolment to the completion of panel ratings, approximately 2-3 months after participant enrolment.

  5. Health seeking behaviour before and after using Ada+MomConnect

    Time frame: From data collection with participant enrolment to the completion of the follow-up survey send out 1 week after enrolment.

  6. Number of participants who consulted an HCP after using Ada+MomConnect

    Time frame: After completion of the follow-up survey send out 1 week after enrolment.

  7. Gaining of health information in a fast and standardised way

    Time frame: On the day of enrolment.

  8. Usability

    Time frame: On the day of enrolment.

  9. Time saved from avoiding unnecessary healthcare consultations

    Time frame: On the day of enrolment.

  10. Time saved and associated estimate of income retained through avoiding unnecessary healthcare consultations

    Time frame: On the day of enrolment.

  11. Healthcare resource utilisation

    Time frame: On the day of enrolment.

  12. Direct Healthcare costs

    Time frame: On the day of enrolment.

Other outcomes

  1. Socioeconomic background of users

    Time frame: On the day of enrolment.

  2. Subgroup analysis

    Time frame: From data collection with participant enrolment to the completion of panel ratings, approximately 2-3 months after participant enrolment

  3. Condition comparison

    Time frame: On the day of enrolment.

  4. Time to receiving advice

    Time frame: On the day of enrolment.

  5. Time to diagnosis

    Time frame: From data collection with participant enrolment to the completion of the follow-up survey send out 1 week after enrolment.

  6. Quantitative and qualitative information collected in the phone survey on demographics, health seeking behaviour and user experience with the symptom checker

    Time frame: Approx. 1-2 weeks after enrolment.

Sponsors and collaborators

Lead sponsor

Ada Health GmbH

Industry

Collaborators

  • Citizen Surveys
  • Reach Digital Health (formerly Praekelt.org)
  • Rockefeller Foundation

Registry information

Official study title

Safety and Feasibility of the Integration of Ada Into the Mobile MomConnect Information Service for Pregnant Women and New Mothers in South Africa

Acronym: SAFEMOM

Important dates

Study start
2023
Primary completion
2023
Study completion
2023
First posted
Jan 23, 2025
Registry last updated
Jan 30, 2025

OpenTrials presents study information sourced from ClinicalTrials.gov. The official registry record should be consulted for the latest information.

View the official ClinicalTrials.gov record (opens in a new tab)

This listing is for discovery and informational purposes only. It is not medical advice, does not guarantee that a study is recruiting, and does not determine eligibility. Contact the study team and a qualified healthcare professional when considering participation.

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