Innovative mHealth platforms have the potential to improve young people's access to conventional SRH information and services in rural Ghana, demonstrating acceptability and utility among health care providers who report benefits including ease and convenience, low cost, anonymity, privacy and confidentiality, reduced healthcare delivery workload, and reduced pressure on limited health infrastructure.
All 20 health care providers interviewed had experience providing mHealth-based SRH information and services to young people in rural Ghana.
Multiple mobile platforms were used by HCPs to deliver SRH information and services to young people in rural Ghana.
HCPs reported multiple perceived benefits of using mHealth platforms to provide SRH services to rural young people.
The findings demonstrate the preferred and acceptable use of mHealth platforms among HCPs for delivering SRH services in rural Ghana.
The perspectives of health care providers on mHealth-based SRH service delivery in rural Ghana had not previously been explored prior to this study.
This research suggests that mobile health (mHealth) technologies — including phone calls, text messages, voice messages, and social media platforms like WhatsApp and Facebook — are being actively used by health care providers in rural Ghana to deliver sexual and reproductive health (SRH) information to young people. The study interviewed 20 health workers across three rural regions and found that all of them had direct experience using these digital tools to educate young people on topics such as contraception, HIV, sexually transmitted infections, hygiene, and menstruation. Health workers reported that these platforms were practical, affordable, and well-suited to the rural context where in-person health services may be limited. A particularly notable finding was that mHealth platforms offered young people anonymity and privacy when seeking sensitive SRH information — something health workers identified as especially important given the influence of local socio-cultural norms and religious beliefs that might otherwise discourage young people from seeking this kind of care in person. Health workers also reported that using these digital tools helped reduce their own workload and eased strain on already stretched health infrastructure in rural areas. This research suggests that mHealth has real promise as a way to extend SRH services to young people in rural, resource-limited settings who might otherwise lack access. However, the authors note that while providers view these platforms positively, more research is needed to understand what barriers may prevent young people themselves from fully accessing or benefiting from these services. The findings point toward a need for broader adoption and formal integration of mHealth tools into rural health systems in Ghana and similar settings.
Laar A, Harris M, Thomson C, Loxton D. (2026). Using mHealth to provide sexual and reproductive health services to young people in rural Ghana: health care providers' perspectives.. Health policy and planning. https://doi.org/10.1093/heapol/czaf071