Understanding Antenatal Care Needs through Co-Creation with Roma Women to Inform the Design of mHealth Technologies

Abstract

Women from the Roma community experience significant health disparities during their pregnancy. Whilst Mobile Health (mHealth) technologies have the potential to improve antenatal care experiences and health outcomes, research on women from ethnically marginalised backgrounds in developed countries remains limited. We report on a series of Co-creation Workshops with 11 Roma women who have settled in the North of England. In this paper, we present thematic insights about their experiences and needs during pregnancy, and their perceptions and attitudes towards digital technologies to inform the design of culturally sensitive mHealth. We contribute to Human Computer Interaction (HCI) with new empirical research to discourses on Critical Digital Health, Intersectional HCI and Women-centred Design, highlight implications for design and encourage a more critical and intersectional design approach to accommodate better the experiences of ethnically marginalised groups whose needs arguably tend to be overlooked and stereotyped.