A Free App for Women, Especially Marginalized Women

WORDS LIM TECK CHOON

The University of Nottingham Malaysia (UNM) and Hanai Jiwa Ibu Sdn Bhd have developed an app, called Jiwa Ibu, to provide localised and tailored information on mental, women’s, maternal, and children’s health.

This app, developed in collaboration of the two entities with St George’s University of London, Universiti Malaya and Universiti Malaysia Sabah, serves to reduce the great disparity in access to healthcare between those residing in urban and rural communities. This is because rural communities have limited access to quality medical centres and professionals, and residents of those communities have to travel further in search of quality healthcare.

AN APP FOR MARGINALISED WOMEN

“For years, we’ve wanted to shift our focus to the rural and marginalised communities of Malaysia. Since the idea began, our team of eight dedicated women have run focus groups involving doctors, nurses, midwives, community nurses and everyday women, to better learn what the ideal women and maternal healthcare pathway should look like,” explains Hanai Jiwa Ibu Founder and CEO, Shamala Hinrichsen. “We don’t expect to solve the world’s problems, of course, but one tiny step forward is better than no steps at all.”

UNM and Hanai Jiwa Ibu recently inked a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to allow for the copyrighting and trademarking of the app, ahead of plans to work alongside Selangkah, Selangor’s healthcare app, to embed part of Jiwa Ibu into the system.

“The Jiwa Ibu app is expected to benefit 15 million women across Malaysia. During its initial alpha-test, the app was downloaded by 3,000 women, with 75% returning to the app within the span of one month from downloading,” shares Associate Professor Dr Joanne Lim Bee Yin of the UNM School of Media Languages and Cultures. “Based on the surveys and interviews that we carried out, 95% of respondents also shared that they wanted the app.

MANY FUNCTIONS FOR EMPOWERMENT & HEALTH SELF-MANAGEMENT

Jiwa Ibu will include a directory for doctors and healthcare centres within the vicinity of the user and other important resources, such as those for violence against women cases.

Users can also store and track their own health records and seek medical assistance through the app.

In an effort to be more accessible, the app will be made available in Bahasa Melayu, English, and other native languages.

Click here to download the app (link opens in a new tab) in the Google Playstore. The app is free.

Free Age Plus App Helps Older Persons Self-Manage Their Own Health

WORDS LIM TECK CHOON

The University Malaya Medical, Business, Computing and Software Engineering teams have launched a free app, called Age Plus.

“The main objective of the project is to develop a health management application for users to self-manage their health,” shares Associate Professor Dr Mumtaz Begum Mustafa, the creator of the Age Plus app.

WHAT DOES THE APP CURRENTLY PROVIDE?
LIFESTYLE
Provides visualization patterns of your daily activities as well as personalized recommendations for a healthier lifestyle

  • Information on healthy foods
  • Calorie calculator to help you plan healthy meals
  • Seat goals for and track your water intake, caffeine consumption, sleep, and exercise

PERSONAL MEDICAL DETAILS
Useful for managing medical information such as medication and consultation detail

  • Record and keep tab on your medications
  • Record and keep track of your medical appointments
  • Find nearby hospitals

HEALTH MANAGEMENT
Improve awareness on disease-related conditions among older persons.

  • Get useful advice and tips on health-related matters
AGE PLUS IS USER-FRIENDLY

Dr Mumtaz explains that the app boasts design solutions to improve its usability especially among older persons. Features of the app that reflect this include:

  • Increased action time and reduction of multiple tasks
  • Simplified in-app navigation/navigation assistance
  • User-friendly interfaces
  • Voice-response technology, with information dissemination through speech
  • Big buttons and simple, static menus

Age Plus is now available for free for Android phone users. Visit this link (link opens in a new tab) to download the app.