10 (Ten) things you should know about OMOWUNMI
1. What is Omowunmi?Omowunmi is a service that delivers health education to expectant and new mothers (via voice calls and SMS) using mobile phones.
2. What are the benefits of Omowunmi?
It allows expectant and new mothers to receive personalized health tips and reminders. See some examples below:
9th week: Antenatal is important to the health of your baby and helps determine if there are any problems in the pregnancy. Start putting money aside for delivery.
13th week: Do not take any drugs except prescribed by doctors to prevent abnormal development of the baby and also avoid taking herbal concoctions.
29th week: You may have fake contractions. These aren’t the same as labor contractions. They happen only once in a while and last about half a minute. They usually go away when you move around
Reminder: You should please attend Ante Natal Clinic at least once every two weeks from the fourth to the sixth month (Second trimester) of your pregnancy.
3. What is unique about Omowunmi?
The message each expectant or new mother gets is based on her Last Menstrual Period (LMP) and date of delivery respectively.
4. Will the messages fit into the Nigerian context?
Yes, the messages sent via Omowunni were developed to ensure it fits the local context.
5. Whose initiative is Omowunmi?
Omowunmi is owned and operated by a Nigerian based healthcare company, Premier Medical Systems Nig. Ltd.
6. Is Premier Medical Systems (PMS) a Non- Governmental Organisation?
No. PMS is an indigenous Health Care Social Enterprise with the focus of leveraging Information Technology (IT) to improve access of the under-served to healthcare in Africa.
7. Is Omowunmi FREE?
No, Omowunmi is not free.
In private hospitals, PMS will make Omowunmi available to our partners (Medical Directors/doctors) at a discounted price. Medical Directors/doctors will then register expectant and new mothers at their centres and charge a recommended price.
In public hospitals, PMS will work with their partners (Government, non -governmental organisations (NGO), and corporate organisations) to make Omowunmi available for free to expectant and new mothers.
8. How will a doctor benefit if he participates?
• Omowunmi has been found to lead to an increase in antenatal clinic attendance
• It has been found to lead to an increase in hospital delivery
• It leads to increase in treatment adherence and compliance
• It serves as an additional source of revenue for the hospital
9. Has any hospital used Omowunmi before? If yes, how successful was it?
Yes. Omowunmi was piloted at Sacred Heart Hospital Abeokuta, Ogun State where over 1,000 women have been registered for free to date. To watch video coverage of the pilot by TV Continental, click here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gZCO4QMeGnk
10. Will a medical doctor sign any contract if he decides to use Omowunmi?
No. A medical doctor is not required to sign a contract. He procures Omowunmi for his clinic/hospital on a “pay as you go”.