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Mobilizing Artificial Intelligence for Maternal Healthcare in Bangladesh

October 21, 2022
This UNESCAP-APRU-Goolge.org funded Project Supports the Bangladeshi Government to Address Challenges in Pregnancy Monitoring & Health Care Technologies using Artificial Intelligence (AI). The United Nations ESCAP-APRU-Google.org ‘AI for Social Good’ project team includes Dr. Olivia Jensen, Mr. Nathaniel Tan from the National University of Singapore’s Institute for Public Understanding of Risks (NUS IPUR), and Dr. Cornelius Kalenzi from KAIST KPC4IR as lead researchers to support Bangladesh government in strengthening the maternal care health workforce and achieving SDG 3, which will transform methods of treatment as well as the relationships among health professionals and patients. Dr. Jensen, Mr. Tan, and Dr. Cornelius Kalenzi will address challenges in perceptions and reception of incorporating AI into continuous pregnancy monitoring systems, as well as related tech challenges. They will investigate technological issues in Bangladesh’s health care sector and how these impact AI-based data analysis and decision-making processes. Project outcomes will support the Bangladeshi Government in developing policies to promote and enable AI policy frameworks and AI capability-building for social good.

In collaboration with the Bangladesh Aspire to Innovate (a2i) Programme of the ICT Division and Cabinet Division of Bangladesh, KAIST KPC4IR and IPUR will be conducting AI related research to support the Bangladeshi Government in the development of policies promoting and enabling AI policy frameworks and building AI capabilities for social good in pregnancy monitoring. Specifically, KPC4IR and IPUR will be investigating the challenges in perceptions and receptions of incorporating AI into continuous pregnancy monitoring systems and related technology challenges.

Pregnancy is a natural process, the period in which a fetus develops inside a woman’s womb or uterus. It results in a series of physiological and psychological changes in a pregnant woman. As a result, even a normal pregnancy may end in potentially life-threatening maternal and fetal complications. Most women do not experience emergencies during pregnancy, but any woman could. Continuous pregnancy monitoring should be ensured during this challenging time for the safety and well-being of both the pregnant woman and new-born child.

Utilising AI in pregnancy monitoring provides opportunities for health care professionals to observe the health-related parameters of their patients and detect pregnancy complications early, which increases the chance of a normal pregnancy and the birth of a healthy baby. Furthermore, it could also enhance a woman’s self-management because it disseminates behaviour change communication messages to women about the importance of maternity care. Pregnancy monitoring also contributes to achieving the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goal 3 which is to “Ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages.”

Currently in Bangladesh, the utilization of maternity care provided by health professionals during and after delivery is alarmingly low in Bangladesh, and monitoring is not performed systematically yet. Besides, a large number of pregnant women do not have access to this service due to a shortage of health workforce, lack of knowledge, and some socio-cultural factors that hinder women’s access to adequate health care services during pregnancy.

The project was funded by the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UN ESCAP) and the Association of Pacific Rim Universities (APRU), and Google.org as part of the “AI for Social Good” multi-stakeholder network. The network supports policy makers by developing insights into what capabilities and governance frameworks will be most supportive for leveraging AI effectively for social good.

Project Kickoff Workshop Source: Information from the Association of Pacific Rim Universities was used in this article.
Project Kickoff Workshop
Source: Information from the Association of Pacific Rim Universities was used in this article.
Contact Information:
Prof. So Young Kim, Dr. Cornelius Kalenzi KPC4IR
Homepage: https://www.apru.org/event/ai-for-social-good-strengthening-capabilities-and-government-frameworks-in-asia-and-the-pacific-informing-ai-policies-and-strategies-in-bangladesh/
E-mail: kalenzi.c@kaist.ac.kr
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