Aim and objectives:
The transition to parenthood presents opportunities to promote mother-child health. Digital innovation can support access to timely and valid information for all, key component of WHO’s Respectful Maternity Care. Making purposeful use of technology, the Baby Buddy Forward project (2017-2021), an Erasmus+ project led by the Cyprus University of Technology, developed a population-level digital health promotion tool for enhancing health literacy during the transition to parenthood. The project formed a European strategic partnership with international and local partners with the aim of developing a “proof of concept” for cross-national digital innovation exchange by adapting the award-winning app, Baby Buddy, (developed by UK partner Best Beginnings) to the socio-cultural and healthcare system of Cyprus. The Participatory Action Research (PAR) framework employed in the process allowed to engage with the professional, NGO and parent community to deliver a locally relevant resource for future parents and a valuable tool for assisting healthcare providers in their educational role.
Method:
The Baby Buddy Cyprus webapp provides a day-to-day companion by offering evidence-based information and emotional support during the transition to parenthood covering the journey from early pregnancy to birth and up to the first six months of the child’s life. Based on guidelines, research evidence and best practice, the Baby Buddy Cyprus webapp delivers “daily messages” in five languages (Greek, English, Russian, Turkish and Arabic), purposefully matched to the stage in the journey as well as over 400 FAQs, Glossary and 220 short videos featuring health professionals providing advice, parents offering support or role-modelling the interaction between professionals-parents.
Outcome:
More than 3000 parents have registered so far since the official launch of the webapp in March 2000, a significant number in a cohort of 10000 birth per year in Cyprus. Furthermore, all video material which can also be accessed through the Baby Buddy YouTube Channel have over 30000 views per month from all over the world. The societal contribution of Baby Buddy has been recognized in recently receiving two awards: Gold Award for “Prevention and Health” by Cyprus Responsible Business Awards and Bronze for “Contribution to Health By an NGO” by Cyprus HealthCare Business Awards
Beyond the main deliverable (the Cypriot version of Baby Buddy), the structured iterative research process adopted is an example of good practice for fostering community partnerships. Both method and lessons learned are highly transferrable to other contexts. All local mother-child scientific bodies participated in the process, and as such, the project achieved to break down silos, cross traditional divisions and fostered synergies towards a common goal. More importantly, it provided an academia-led platform for local NGO, Birth Forward, to be an equal partner in the conversation and further their advocacy work.
Added value:
The Baby Buddy Cyprus webapp is a high-quality online learning environment, based on guidelines, research evidence and best practice, covering the journey from early pregnancy to birth and the first six months of the child’s life. The participatory process used to customise the material to priorities of the Cyprus healthcare system and fine-tune to the socio-cultural setting involved over 800 parents and health professionals. This process raised consciousness through reflection among maternal-child care professionals. Understanding the context from the perspective of the parents, and the extent to which they currently feel supported, offers much-lacking insights for practicing and future health professionals and can impact the process of improving the quality of antenatal education and care provision.
