Description
Introduction
India has a large migrant population that often lacks access to healthcare services due to different challenges including language barriers, lack of access to reliable information, and unfamiliarity with available health services. A project was launched in Indore, Madhya Pradesh to create awareness among migrants about health issues and for improving utilization of health services. However, reaching-out to migrants, on regular basis, was a challenge due to their mobility and often extend working hours. It was observed that most of the migrants (90%+) have access to mobile phones hence a chatbot was designed to share information about health issues and service availability, address migrant’s health related queries.
Findings
At the starting of the project, a survey was done with 426 migrants (218 male and 208 female). While 66.8% migrants had some health problems (excluding minor health issues, which doesn’t require facility based services) in last 1 year, only 28%, of those who had health problems, accessed health services. Hence, a chatbot was designed, in discussion with migrants and it was hosted on the WhatsApp platform. The chatbot was initially field tested with a smaller group of 120 migrants (60 male and 60 female), and based on the feedback, further improvements were made. Chatbot was designed to respond to the health related queries of migrants and also share details of health facilities, in a particular location along with timings and contact details. Over 1 year, the chatbot had 21,786 conversations with over 7,328 unique migrant users. Top query topics included symptoms of different diseases, managing illnesses, nutrition, mental health, addiction and location of health facilities. The chatbot helped migrants find health information and health facilities in the city. An anonymous survey of 500 migrant chatbot users showed that 87.4% found it highly useful, 72.1% said it increased their health knowledge, and 43.6% reported they consulted a doctor after using it.
Results
The project demonstrated that chatbots are an innovative way to reach migrant populations and provide tailored health information ranging from disease prevention to access to healthcare. It empowered migrants to manage their health more effectively. It also helped migrants in overcoming barriers faced in availing health services including lack of awareness and information. The easy-to-use, native language chatbot interface increased migrants' engagement with health information and services in the city.
Conclusion
The use of a chatbot as a tool for health education and creating awareness on service availability service among migrants proved to be highly effective. It bridged the information gap and made health services more accessible for the migrant population. This initiative demonstrated the potential of digital tools in public health, especially in reaching underserved communities. It also highlighted the importance of culturally and linguistically tailored health communication strategies in improving health outcomes.
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