Adoption Of M-Health And Usability Challenges In M-Health Applications In Kenya: Case Of Uzazi Poa M-Health Prototype Application

The main objective of this study was to identify factors promoting the adoption of M-health and determine usability challenges in the existing M-health applications in Kenya. Specifically the study aimed at establishing the factors promoting adoption of M-health, determining the usability challenges in M-health applications in Kenya. Consequently an Mhealth prototype application was developed to address the usability challenges. The M-health prototype application dubbed “Uzazi Poa” App. was designed to complement maternal healthcare institutions by providing ante-natal and post natal healthcare information. The study was significant to M-health solution developers as well as healthcare providers in Kenya since it identified the factors that influence M-health adoption in Kenya, usability challenges in M-health applications as well as proposed solutions to remedy these usability challenges in the M-health application in Kenya.

Both qualitative and quantitative analysis was employed in this study. For qualitative analysis a careful review and analysis of scientific journals, conference proceedings, study reports, website articles, newspaper articles and magazine articles was done. This enabled the research to collect comprehensive information on factors that influence adoption of M-health in Kenya. For quantitative analysis the researcher used questionnaires as the instrument of data collection from the respondents.

The study used a descriptive research design. The target population was made up of potential users of the M-health prototype application which were in two groups of respondents, the first group of respondents being medical practitioners who are doctors, nurses and other medical staff and the second group being pregnant women, mothers or fathers of children below 3 years old. Primary and secondary data was collected from a sample size of 68 respondents was used. The collected data was coded in Microsoft Excel and later imported in to SPSS a software package used for statistical analysis. Descriptive statistics was used to show, describe and summarize the collected data into meaningful ways where by patterns were identified and interpreted in relation to the research objectives.