Maternal Life Project

HACEY

Maternal Life Project

Reducing maternal deaths in Nigeria’s hard-to-reach communities with AI-powered diagnostics, mobile care, and trained rural health workers

Lagos, Nigeria

NGA

Nonprofit

In Nigeria, a woman dies every two minutes from preventable pregnancy-related causes (WHO, 2023). This burden is highest in underserved rural areas like Oyo State in southwest Nigeria, where maternal mortality ratios exceed 1,000 deaths per 100,000 live births in some localities—nearly double the national average of 512 (NDHS, 2018; MICS, 2021). In these hard-to-reach communities, over 60% of pregnant women do not receive skilled care during pregnancy and delivery (UNICEF, 2023). This crisis is driven by the "three delays": delay in recognizing complications, delay in reaching care, and delay in receiving adequate treatment. These communities are located far from functional facilities, which are also poorly equipped. As a result, high-risk conditions like anaemia, hypertension, infections, and pre-eclampsia go undetected until it’s too late. Globally, over 295,000 women die annually from similar causes, with 66% occurring in sub-Saharan Africa (WHO, 2023). In Oyo State, over 61% of pregnant women are anaemic, 20% deliver without skilled assistance, and fewer than half complete four antenatal visits (MICS, 2021). Nigeria alone accounts for nearly 20% of global maternal deaths (WHO, 2023). Solving this crisis requires a decentralized, community-based model that delivers diagnostics, early detection, and referrals, empowering frontline health workers to save lives in real time.

Our solution is the Maternal Life Project, a community-based model that uses AI-powered diagnostics and mobile health technology to reduce maternal deaths in hard-to-reach communities in Oyo State, Nigeria. At its core is the Maternal Life Kit—a portable toolkit equipped with nine key diagnostic devices including a digital BP monitor, haemoglobin meter, urine test strips, fetal doppler, thermometer, and pulse oximeter. Trained community health workers (CHWs) use the kit to provide on-the-spot health checks and AI-powered diagnosis for pregnant women during home visits. Each CHW is equipped with the Impact Health App, which captures patient data, flags danger signs with AI-driven algorithms, and supports decision-making. The app sends SMS appointment reminders, enables emergency referrals, and syncs data to a central dashboard monitored by the Primary Health Care Board for real-time response and planning. This system ensures early detection and timely intervention for conditions like anaemia, pre-eclampsia, and infections. It bridges the gap between rural women and life-saving care by decentralizing maternal health services and making personalized care accessible at the doorstep.

The target population for this solution is pregnant women in rural communities in Oyo State, Nigeria, particularly those who live in hard-to-reach areas with limited access to healthcare facilities. These women face severe barriers to accessing skilled care, with over 60% not receiving adequate prenatal or delivery care (UNICEF, 2023). Many of them live far from functional health centers, making it difficult to reach timely care. This lack of access leads to undiagnosed and untreated pregnancy complications, contributing to Nigeria's high maternal mortality rate. The solution directly serves these women by providing on-the-spot diagnostics through a portable, Maternal Life Kit, operated by trained community health workers. The solution enables early detection of critical conditions such as anaemia, pre-eclampsia, and infections, which are often missed due to limited healthcare infrastructure. Additionally, the AI-powered Impact Health mobile app allows for real-time data tracking, appointment scheduling, SMS reminders, and emergency referrals to nearby healthcare facilities. This empowers community health workers to intervene quickly and saves lives by ensuring that women in rural areas receive the care they need when they need it most.