How digital innovation is transforming women’s healthcare in Kenya

From tracking pregnancies and menstrual cycles to enabling remote consultations and wearable health monitoring, technology designed specifically for women is changing how healthcare is delivered and accessed. FemTech (female technology) is helping women monitor their health, access treatment earlier, and make more informed decisions throughout different stages of life. In Kenya, where many women still face challenges accessing specialist care and often experience delays in diagnosis and treatment, FemTech is increasingly being seen as an opportunity to improve health outcomes and expand access to care. From maternal and reproductive health services to disease prevention and monitoring, digital tools are creating new ways of connecting women to healthcare. According to Professor Anne Kihara, an obstetrician and gynaecologist at the University of Nairobi and immediate former president of FIGO, women experience diseases differently and often face health challenges that require approaches tailored to their needs. “Women have always interacted with health technologies through pregnancy testing, blood pressure monitoring, and blood sugar checks. What is changing is that innovation is becoming more deliberate in addressing conditions that uniquely affect women,” she said. Professor Kihara explained that globally, women carry a greater burden of disease and often present differently even when suffering from the same conditions as men. “A woman experiencing a heart condition may present differently from a man. Women also experience health conditions that are unique to them, including menstruation, pregnancy, uterine fibroids, endometriosis, and menopause,” she noted. Because of these differences, FemTech is increasingly moving beyond general digital health tools to develop solutions designed around women’s lived experiences and healthcare journeys. Today, FemTech includes technologies such as telemedicine, teleconsultations, wearable devices, rapid diagnostic tools, remote monitoring systems, and preventive health innovations. These technologies allow women to monitor pregnancies, track chronic conditions, access health information remotely, and seek medical advice without always having to travel to a healthcare facility. For Kenya, where access to specialists remains uneven, and healthcare workers continue to be stretched across regions, these technologies could help reduce delays in care and bring services closer to communities. Professor Kireki Omenwa, an obstetrician and gynaecologist, speaking on PPH. (Charity Kilei) But experts caution that technology alone is not enough. Professor Kihara emphasised that digital innovations must remain connected to health systems and healthcare providers so women receive proper interpretation of results, professional guidance, and timely treatment. “For these technologies to work effectively, they must remain linked to clinicians who can provide sound interpretation and subsequent management,” she said. She noted that for FemTech to succeed, Kenya must also create an enabling environment for innovation. This includes increasing awareness of available technologies, expanding internet connectivity, improving smartphone access, strengthening quality standards, and creating supportive policies that encourage responsible innovation. One of the proposals gaining attention is the development of a regulatory sandbox, a controlled environment where health technologies can be tested and validated before being rolled out at scale. “When developing a technology, there must be room to test whether it is safe, effective, and suitable before implementation,” Professor Kihara explained. Another issue receiving growing attention is data protection. As more women use digital platforms for health services, sensitive information, including reproductive histories, menstrual data, and personal health records, is increasingly stored digitally. “We are talking about deeply personal information. Data safety, security, and protection must remain central as these technologies continue to grow,” she said. Professor Kihara added that Kenya’s digital health reforms provide an opportunity to support responsible innovation while strengthening primary healthcare and expanding universal health coverage. Alongside direct patient care, digital innovation is also beginning to reshape how healthcare workers are trained. Medical educators are introducing technologies such as virtual reality and remote learning platforms to strengthen emergency obstetric training for doctors and specialists. Through immersive simulations, clinicians can repeatedly practice responding to complications such as postpartum haemorrhage (PPH), one of the leading causes of maternal deaths, allowing them to build confidence and improve decision-making before encountering real emergencies. Remote mentorship technologies are also making it possible for specialists to support healthcare workers in distant counties without being physically.