ORIGINAL RESEARCH article
Front. Digit. Health
Sec. Human Factors and Digital Health
Volume 7 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fdgth.2025.1574946
Evaluating the impact of engaging healthcare providers in an AI-based gamified mHealth intervention for improving maternal health outcomes among disadvantaged pregnant women in Lebanon
Provisionally accepted
Shadi Saleh1,2
Nour El Arnaout1
Nadine Sabra1Asmaa El Dakdouki1
Khaled El Iskandarani1Zahraa Chamseddine1Randa Hamadeh3Abed Shanaa4
Mohamad Alameddine5*- 1Global Health Institute, American University of Beirut, Beirut, Lebanon
- 2Faculty of Health Sciences, American University of Beirut, Beirut, Lebanon
- 3Ministry of Public Health (Lebanon), Beirut, Beirut, Lebanon
- 4United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), Beirut, Lebanon
- 5College of Health Sciences, University of Sharjah, Sharjah, United Arab Emirates
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women divided into three groups: control (n=1,315), non-HCP intervention (n=668), and HCP intervention (n=897). Intervention components included AI-driven, gamified HCP professional development via the GAIN MHI app, weekly WhatsApp-based educational messages, and ANC visit reminders. Data on healthcare access (ANC visits, supplement intake, ultrasounds, and lab tests) and outcomes (term delivery, maternal/neonatal complications) were analyzed using logistic regression to calculate adjusted odds ratios (OR).The HCP arm significantly improved healthcare access, with higher odds of attending ≥4 ANC visits (OR=1.968, 95% CI: 1.575-2.459), completing ≥2 ultrasounds (OR=3.026, 95% CI: 2.301-3.981), lab test completion (OR=2.828, 95% CI: 1.894-4.221), and supplement intake (OR=1.467, 95% CI: 1.221-1.762). Term deliveries were more likely in the HCP arm (OR=1.360, 95% CI: 1.011-1.289), and neonatal morbidity decreased by 52.15% (OR=1.521, 95% CI: 1.127-2.051). No improvements were seen in abortion rates, and normal deliveries decreased across intervention arms. Significant baseline demographic differences, including nationality and chronic disease prevalence, were observed between groups.Integrating HCPs into an mHealth intervention significantly enhanced ANC uptake and maternal and neonatal outcomes in disadvantaged populations in Lebanon. These findings underscore the importance of combining digital tools with clinical support to address systemic barriers and improve maternal health in resource-limited settings. Future interventions should address delivery practices and broader social determinants of health to achieve sustainable impacts.
Keywords: Maternal health, Gamification, artificial intelligence, mHealth, Neonatal outcomes, Antenatal Care (ANC), Healthcare provider
Received: 11 Feb 2025; Accepted: 16 Jul 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Saleh, El Arnaout, Sabra, El Dakdouki, El Iskandarani, Chamseddine, Hamadeh, Shanaa and Alameddine. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence: Mohamad Alameddine, College of Health Sciences, University of Sharjah, Sharjah, United Arab Emirates
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