CodeFusionist/maternal-health-sms-system

SMS-based maternal health advisory system for rural Kenya # 🩺 Maternal Health SMS Advisory System --- ## 📷 Preview (Screenshots coming soon) --- ## 📌 Overview A low-cost SMS-based maternal health system designed to improve antenatal care adherence in rural Kenya by delivering timely reminders and health advisories to expectant mothers. This system was developed as part of a Diploma in ICT project and focuses on accessibility, simplicity, and real-world usability in low-resource settings. --- ## ❗ The Problem In many rural communities: - Expectant mothers miss antenatal clinic visits due to lack of timely reminders - Health information between visits is limited or unavailable - Most users rely on basic feature phones, not smartphones - Internet access is inconsistent or unavailable As a result, preventable complications often go unnoticed due to gaps in communication. --- ## 💡 The Solution This system uses **SMS (Short Message Service)** to deliver: - Timely antenatal appointment reminders - Stage-based pregnancy health advice - Alerts on potential danger signs - Basic nutrition and self-care guidance The system works entirely on basic mobile phones, requiring **no internet access**, making it highly accessible in rural environments. --- ## ⚙️ Key Features - 📅 Automated appointment reminders - 🤰 Trimester-based health messaging - ⚠️ Danger sign alerts - 🌍 Multilingual support (English & Swahili) - 🔁 Message retry and logging system - ⏱ Scheduled messaging using cron jobs --- ## 🏗 System Architecture The system is built using simple, reliable technologies: - **Backend:** PHP - **Database:** MySQL - **Scheduling:** Cron Jobs - **SMS Gateway:** Africa’s Talking - **Logic:** Expected Date of Delivery (EDD)-based message generation Messages are automatically scheduled and sent based on each patient’s pregnancy stage. --- ## 🌍 Real-World Impact - Works on **any mobile phone** (no smartphone required) - Low-cost and scalable for rural deployment - Designed with local context and constraints in mind - Sup …