m-mama

No women or baby should die for lack of transport to emergency care

Thousands of pregnant women and babies in rural areas of Africa are unable to travel to hospital in an emergency and rates of maternal and newborn deaths remain stubbornly high.

m-mama is reversing this trend and saving lives by using mobile technology, ambulance management and community drivers to ensure women and babies quickly get to the life-saving emergency healthcare they need.

The national m-mama emergency transport service is free to women and babies at point of need and inexpensive for governments to own and operate.

Available in the following countries:

Tanzania

Lesotho

Watch our m-mama video

How it works

Women or their health workers call a toll-free number to connect with a trained dispatcher.

The dispatcher uses the m-mama app to quickly triage a patient, identify the closest appropriate healthcare facility, and locate the nearest available emergency transport.

m-mama improves ambulance management and availability but also creates a network of community drivers willing to step in when other options are unavailable.

m-mama is free for women at the point of access, and drivers are paid for the journey by the government via M-Pesa (Vodacom's mobile money transfer system) or other approved mechanisms.

m-mama intentionally uses cheap, basic technology, and the m-mama app is designed for use online and offline, making it ideal for rural areas.

Impact

In Tanzania, 58% of mothers transported by m-mama received emergency C-sections, with an estimated 15% reduction in maternal deaths, and a 30% reduction in cost per ambulance trip.

The availability and accessibility of emergency transportation through m-mama has led to a 107% increase in maternal and a 97% increase in neonatal incidents handled by health facilities. This reflects success in improving access to healthcare rather than just an increase in the number of deliveries