Prem App

designing branding for web, print & mobile

MOBILE APP | WEBSITE | BRANDING| PRINT | Service Design

Educational

Strength

Warmth

Prem App (Maternal Care)

Maternal Healthcare Ecosystem: Designing Services for Pregnant Women in Rural India

During my UX Design internship at UMass Chan Medical School, I designed a digital health ecosystem for first-time parents in rural India—bridging the gap between clinical expertise and community accessibility.

The platform integrates predictive malnutrition analytics with localized health education, backed by a social commerce model that makes essential childcare products affordable for underserved communities.

AT A GLANCE

My first ever UX Internship!

Designing a maternal-health app for community health workers and mothers in rural India

PROBLEM

Community health workers in rural India track pregnancies and child nutrition on paper, which makes it hard to spot high-risk pregnancies and infant malnutrition early.

MY ROLE

UX Design Intern at UMass Chan Medical School, Aug–Dec 2023, working with a mentor, a UX lead and a product manager.

Ran discovery and market research to translate complex clinical requirements into accessible, low-literacy user flows.
Executed problem solving, MVP scoping, wireframing, and interactive prototyping.
Led product presentations and key stakeholder reviews to align leadership on the core solution.

WHAT I DESIGNED

An Android app with two experiences, one for parents and one for community health workers, plus predictive risk flags, a design system built for low-literacy users, and a concept-to-developer hand-off.

OUTCOME

Showcased at the 2023 G20 New Delhi Summit by Dr. Apurv Soni as an example of the future of health-tech in rural India.

TEAM

Apurv Soni – Mentor

Andres Colubri – UX Lead

Ibriz Moonim – Product Manager

PROBLEM WITH PREGNANCY CARE

The Human Cost of Inadequate Care

Behind every statistic is a mother, a child, and a family whose lives could be transformed through better healthcare access. By replacing systemic friction with compassionate, community-first service design, we turn passive data points into active pathways for survival, preventive care, and lasting health equity.

35,000+

women

in 2017

Women lost to pregnancy & childbirth-related complications in India

📅 That's 96 women every day

See Meena’s Story>

12%

of global

mortality

Of global maternal mortality occurs in India - being 17.7% of world population

📍 Concentrated in rural regions

View Regional Impact >

60%

preventable

deaths

Deaths could be prevented with proper monitoring and early intervention

🧒 That's 250,000 children annually

See how technology helps? >

MISSION

Project Goal

To create an Android Mobile Application that

uses predictive analysis and data science

for tracking pregnant women and child health, in rural India to support community healthcare workers in fighting against infant malnutrition

Target Users: Healthcare Workers

Focus: Maternal & Child Health

Technology: Predictive Analytics

The Problem

In rural India, limited access to healthcare information and resources leads to preventable maternal and infant deaths. Community healthcare workers lack the tools to effectively monitor high-risk pregnancies and infant nutrition.

The lack of education and resources during pregnancy contributes to this issue.

Meet Reema & her daughter

A young mother from rural India who lacks access to proper prenatal care and nutritional guidance

Real time monitoring & tracking

Track vital health metrics and medication schedules with automated reminders and personalized insights.

Healthcare Worker Access

Connect seamlessly with community healthcare workers for virtual consultations and emergency support.

Predictive Analysis

Use predictive analysis and machine learning to identify potential issues.

How might we help..

Pregnant mothers are looking for a way to track their baby’s health, receive updates, and get trusted advice—without frequent doctor visits

Jump to Design

Or keep scrolling to know the design process

BACKGROUND RESEARCH

How is pregnancy currently tracked in India?

Pregnancy in rural India is inconsistently tracked due to limited healthcare access, poor infrastructure, and geographical barriers. Meanwhile, child malnutrition and preventable deaths remain a serious concern, driven by lack of awareness, posing a significant challenge to India's population health.

India has two main cadres of Government Community Healthcare Workers:

ASHAs: Act as a bridge between their community and the public health system. They provide essential health education, focusing on reproductive health, diabetes prevention, and healthy lifestyle choices.

Anganwadis: Anganwadis are government centers in India that provide nutrition, healthcare, and early education to children under six, pregnant women, and nursing mothers, aiming to improve child development and maternal health.

LOOP HOLES IN CURRENT WORKFLOW

Problems Faced by the Anganwadis & ASHAs:

Through primary and secondary research, we identified the key challenges faced by ASHA and Anganwadi workers. This insight was gathered from newspaper reports and direct interviews, helping us understand their pain points and daily struggles.

Study Reference JFMR

Manual Record-Keeping:

Without digital tools, workers rely on paper records, leading to errors and inefficiencies in prenatal care, immunizations, and nutrition tracking.

THINK INDIA QUARTERLY

Increased Workload:

Repetitive data entry burdens Anganwadi workers, limiting community engagement and service delivery.

FELLOWSHIP.BLUEKRAFT.IN

Delayed Data Processing:

Reliance on manual methods results in slower data compilation and reporting, hindering prompt decision-making and timely interventions in critical health situations.

COMPETITIVE POSITION

Where does Prem sit in India's health-tech landscape?

Existing tools serve administrators and CHWs — none address the field worker and the family together. Prem sits in the gap: community-first, family-facing, built for low-literacy users.

Prem App

NHM E-Asha

Poshan Tracker

PIERS

MSakhi

Khushi Baby

Poshan Tracker

Government-run nutrition surveillance across Anganwadi centres.Admin-first.
No parent-facing interface.

mSakhi & Khushi Baby

CHW-facing tools with visit support and health tracking. Strong in the field.No family-facing layer. Text-heavy for low-literacy users.

PIERS & NHM ASHA App

Highly specialised or paper-replacement tools. Narrow scope, single condition or record-keeping only. No holistic maternal + child tracking.

Government/Admin

CHW/ Field Worker Focused

← Government / Admin

Community / Family →

Where existing tools fall short:

Many CHWs still use paper registers because existing tools don’t account for limited literacy, smartphone skills, or connectivity gaps.
Most tools are single-role — the mother and her CHW live in entirely separate systems with no shared view.

The app was designed for two unique personas

PARENT:

A parent of 2 children who is concerned about the health and well being of her new born baby, and how to take care.

COMMUNITY HEALTH CARE WORKER:
A healthcare worker, who lives far away, and does not have enough resources to help the parent.

PRIMARY RESEARCH

Research Findings

I conducted interviews with 10 employees, followed and observed their daily work and visit to seniors' home, analyzed their work documents and current CMS system.
‍

01. Front-line care workers need clear & updated schedule, task know-how, and be able to get urgent support.

Front-line case workers need to visit several seniors to provide different services everyday. The shift and service details always keep changing. They had to check the updated schedule everyday on a paper posted in the NGO center.

We analyzed the existing data logging processes across various available resources to gain a comprehensive understanding of the current system.

02. The information of each case need to be better archived, centralized and shared among employees.

Professionals and front-line case workers may work for the same service users. However, the information for each service cannot be easily shared among all. They need to specifically ask each other to get the updates when needed.

Building Trust via Data Provenance

Sales leads needed transparency before presenting AI metrics to buyers.

Eliminating Pre-Upload Drop-Off

First-time users weren't sure what Concept Evaluation would do with their images.

CONVERTING RESEARCH TO INFORMED DECISIONS

Journey Mapping

We mapped a CHW's typical day through research and field interviews — understanding the rhythm of her work before designing a single screen for it.

CONVERTING RESEARCH TO INFORMED DECISIONS

Making the connections and the ecosystem

To better understand the application and its solutions, I analyzed the different user roles, tasks, and notifications. I created a persona-based task matrix to map out tasks, frequencies, notification providers, and recipients. This helped define roles, responsibilities, and interactions, ensuring a clear and efficient user experience.

Task
Data collection in real‐time and face‐to‐face counselling
Prediction of weight
Delivery of pushed text messages
Delivery of pushed voice messages
Delivery of alert (text) messages
Mobile phone to mobile phone counseling
Field supervisory app
Suggestion on healthcare
Provider
ASHA’s / Anganwadi / CHW
Programmed Predictive Model
Server delivered/programmed
Server delivered/programmed
Server delivered/programmed
Study ANM Counsellor
Field Supervisor
Server delivered/programmed
Recipient
App Solution
Using the Garbhasutra app with
Embedded counselling messages and videos
Automated program through data entered in the app
Automated program through data entered in the app
Automated program through data entered in the app
Using the Garbhasutra app to schedule calls and recordings
Using the Garbhasutra app to schedule calls and recordings
Using the app for supervising the work on ASHA’s
Embedded counseling messages and videos
Schedule and frequency
Monthly home visits starting 10 month of infant age
Thrice a week enrolment of infant age and health until 12 months of age
Once a week starting enrolment of infant until 12 months of age.
Conditional: Based on emergency detected on the app
Every fortnightly starting from enrolment of infant until 12 months of age.
Once a week starting enrolment of infant until 12 months of age.
Monthly based on the meetings with project managers till 12months
Thrice a week enrolment of infant age and health until 12 months of age
Abbreviations: ANM (Auxiliary nurse midwife, CHW (Community Health Care Workers), ASHA’s (Accredited Social Health Activists).
Reference Point: Msakhi
User
ASHA’s / Anganwadi / CHW / ANM Counselor
Security?
User/Patient
CHW
Server
Actions
Parent 1
Parent 2
Patient Information
CHW / ASHA
Server
Predictive Analysis
Notifcations
And Alerts
Doctor 1
Doctor 2
Push Texts
Alert Texts
Counselling
Videos
Data Collection
Garbhasutra
Security?
This helped us create a clear information architecture and user journeys to understand user interactions with the system.

DESIGN SYSTEM

Building the Design System & Foundations

Rural India means three constraints most apps skip: low literacy, patchy connectivity, low-end Android.

These had to shape the system, not get bolted on after. We locked the icon dictionary and sync component first. Redesigning fifteen screens later costs more than getting the foundation right once.

Prem App

Roboto

Regular/ Medium/Bold

Typography

(गर्भसूत्र)

रोबोटो

Regular/ Medium/Bold

Icons

Illustrations & Button Styles

Colors

The color palette combines bold Indian reds with soft purples, symbolizing motherhood's warmth and healthcare's professionalism.

Logo

"Garbha" means pregnancy, and "Sutra" means guide. The name represents a guiding thread for a healthy pregnancy journey.

The fused mother and child symbolize their bond, representing care, protection during pregnancy.

Mission Statement

One shared record for a family and their health worker, so risks are noticed early and help is one step away.

Parents/Guardian

Healthcare Worker

Know how my baby is

A calm to urgent status, growth on the right age, and vaccines never missed.

Help without waiting

Danger signs, one tap to call the CHW, and a way to ask when unsure.

Know who is first

A risk list sorted by urgency, with the reason in plain words.

Work anywhere

Offline first, voice notes, and the family’s own language.

Meet the parent

Parents see their baby every hour. They are not trained, often anxious, and share one record with their CHW. The app has to be calm, clear and quick to act on.

REPRESENTATIVE PROFILE

A parent of a young child

Both parents, for a baby up to 5 years.

Phone

Android, often shared

Language

Hindi, simple words

Experience

New parents, sometimes a baby born early

Time

Minutes between work and home

A day at home

7:30 am

Calm

Morning check

A calm green status and one thing to do.

12:30 pm

Unsure

A feeding worry

Harshi feeds less. “When to worry” helps.

2:00 pm

Waiting for a reply

Ask, don’t wait

A voice note to the CHW, with a reply time.

8:00 pm

Reassured

Both parents in

The father sees the same record.

What we designed for

Growth, right age

PARENT 2

One tap to call

PARENTS 2 AND 3

Plain words

PARENTS 1 AND 2

One shared record

PARENT 1

Patient onboarding

Parents start with two simple choices: who they are, and how to sign in. Role selection comes first so every screen after is relevant, and sign-in is a phone number and a one-time code, with nothing to remember.

Two users, one app — pick your path from the start

Role selection happens upfront, so every screen after is relevant to you.

Three things Prem does, plainly

No feature lists. Each screen answers one question a first-time user actually has.

Warmth before function

The last thing seen before login is the mission — in language that works across literacy levels.

No password, no friction

A phone number and an OTP. Nothing more.

Baby's Dashboard

The home screen answers one question: how is my baby today? A low, medium or high risk status leads the page, with the CHW’s name on every update, followed by articles and videos matched to the child’s stage.

Content matched to the child's stage

Articles and videos surface based on where the child is today, not a generic library.

AI Recommendations

Articles and videos surface based on where the child is today, not a generic library.

Health status, always visible

Risk level leads the screen — low, medium, or high — with the CHW's name attached to every update.

Starting Together

Both parents join the family record their CHW created. One code, one plain line about sharing, and a few questions about the baby, including whether she was born early.

IN THE CHW APP

Family code

482 719

Shared at the first visit

Join screen: a six-digit code from the CHW and one plain line about sharing records

One plain line on sharing

Corrected age, explained

Join with a code

The CHW’s family code links both parents. Consent is one plain line.

About the baby

Born early? Growth and milestones switch to corrected age.

Know about the health of the infant

Calm when things are fine, clear when they are not. Growth is read against the right age, and vaccines never get missed.

Home screen: a green Low Risk status, the health worker and recommended articles

Growth screen: weight against the curve on corrected age, a weight entry and why corrected age is used

Vaccination screen: six of nine done, one due this week, one overdue

Calm to urgent, at a glance

The right curve for her age

Low

Medium

High

Home

A calm to urgent status and one next step.

Growth

Corrected age for babies born early, with a quick weight entry.

Vaccines

Due, done and overdue, with a reminder.

Know about the health of the infant

Calm when things are fine, clear when they are not. Growth is read against the right age, and vaccines never get missed.

Something looks wrong

Ask my CHW screen: a topic, a typed message, a voice note and earlier requests

Danger sign

Not sure

One tap to call

Type or speak

Meet the CHW

Community health workers carry this app from home to home. Their day, and the limits of it, shape every screen that follows.

REPRESENTATIVE PROFILE

A community health worker

Visits mothers and babies at home.

Phone

One shared Android phone

Travels

On foot, home to home

Languages

Hindi and local languages

Time

Minutes per home, many homes

A day in the field

8:30 am

Online

Morning plan

Syncs at the clinic, sees who needs a visit.

10:00 am

Offline

Home visits

Signal drops. Visits save on the phone.

1:00 pm

Weak signal

One urgent flag

A danger sign changes the afternoon.

5:30 pm

Online

Back online

Visits sync. Tomorrow’s list is ready.

What we designed for

Offline first

CHW 3

Risk list by urgency

CHW 1

Taps and voice

CHW 2 AND 3

Code sign-in, Hindi

CHW 3

The dialy loop

Who needs me first? Families are sorted by risk, with the reason in plain words, so every visit starts in the right place.

Today screen: 4 visits today, an urgent ping from Reema Singh and the next visit

Risk list screen: families sorted by risk, each with the reason in plain words

Family detail screen: a growth chart against the average and why the child was flagged

Urgent comes first

The reason, not a score

Growth against the average

Today

The day at a glance: who is urgent, who is next, and what has synced.

Risk list

Families sorted by risk, each with the reason in plain words.

Family detail

Growth against the average, and why the app flagged it.

Record & act

From a reading to an urgent referral. Weights fill in on their own, danger signs are one tap each, and help is a single screen away.

Scale reading screen: a connected Bluetooth baby scale shows a steady weight of 6.4 kilograms

Danger signs screen: yes and no questions, with one yes opening urgent help

Emergency referral screen: route to the nearest health centre and who has been alerted

1 · SCALE READING

2 · DANGER SIGNS

3 · EMERGENCY REFERRAL

No → visit continues

Yes → urgent help

Weight fills in from the Bluetooth scale. No typing.

Plain Yes and No questions. One Yes opens the urgent path.

Who to call, where to go, and what has already been sent.

Today screen translated into Hindi (sample translation)

Offline state screen: you are offline, two items waiting to sync, and what still works

हिन्दी · sample

Speak, don’t type

No signal, still works

Voice note screen: recording timer and waveform with a stop button

Offline first

Everything is saved on the phone and shown as waiting to sync.

Voice, not typing

Record a note in your own language and attach it to a request.

Local language

The same screens in Hindi. Sample translation, to be reviewed.

Works anywhere

Low signal, low literacy, shared phones. The app keeps working offline, listens when typing is hard, and speaks the family’s language.

Designing the loop, the messy ends and iterating through it all to make the final dev file.

KEY LEARNINGS & TAKEAWAYS

Key Takeaway and learnings from the internship

Showcased at the 2023 G20 New Delhi Summit by Dr. Apurv Soni as an example of the future of health-tech in rural India. The real-world feedback sharpened the project’s direction beyond the MVP.

Constraints are the brief.

Low literacy, patchy connectivity, low-end Android weren't edge cases to design around — they were the actual design problem. The best decisions came from treating infrastructure as a design input, not an obstacle.

Design both sides as one system

The CHW and the parent never use the app together, yet they share one record. Designing both at once surfaced gaps, like consent, reply times and who sees what, that one app alone would have missed.