A digital health intervention model using community health workers: findings from primary health services in rural Bangladesh

A digital health intervention model using community health workers: findings from primary health services in rural Bangladesh | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Research Article A digital health intervention model using community health workers: findings from primary health services in rural Bangladesh Marzia Zaman, Rubaiyat Alim Hridhee, Refat Ahmed Bhuiyan, Charles Aunkan Gomes, and 4 more This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-5391957/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Posted Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract Objective: This paper aims to understand people’s health conditions after a digital health intervention model was implemented in a rural area of Bangladesh. We analyzed the health conditions of the served population 18 months after the operation. Methods: The data presented in this paper are obtained from the model’s pilot implementation in one area in Bangladesh. Community health workers provided monthly health services at doorsteps while collecting various sociodemographic, health, economic, and environmental data. We presented the findings from the collected data on user health. Sociodemographic and health measurement data were presented as proportions with 95% confidence intervals (CIs). Multivariate logistic regression was used to analyze the association between diseases and their respective risk factors. We compared the health vitals across three consecutive periods to determine improvements in health outcomes over time. Results: The model served 32,581 people from 7,090 households during this operation. We found that 21.76% of the served population were overweight, 8.18% had prehypertension, 16.45% had high blood glucose, and 11% children were malnourished. From the analysis of risk factors, we found that people aged > 40 were associated with developing hypertension, diabetes, and cardiovascular diseases(CVD). CVD was associated with hypertension and stroke. Comparative analysis of different periods showed improved BMI, BP, and MUAC. Blood glucose measurements did not show significant improvement. Conclusion: The implemented model provided regular health screenings, consultancy services, and digital referrals. The features included in the model are unique and designed according to the needs of the rural population. Findings from the operation identified demographics who were at high risk of developing NCDs. The comparative analysis found a positive impact on the health conditions of the rural people who took regular health measurements. Digital health inclusion Digital Health intervention model Clinical Decision Support System (CDSS) Non-communicable diseases (NCD) Community health workers (CHWs) Primary healthcare Health Equity Universal health coverage Sustainable development goals Full Text Additional Declarations No competing interests reported. Supplementary Files SupplementaryMaterial.docx Cite Share Download PDF Status: Posted Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. As a division of Research Square Company, we’re committed to making research communication faster, fairer, and more useful. We do this by developing innovative software and high quality services for the global research community. Our growing team is made up of researchers and industry professionals working together to solve the most critical problems facing scientific publishing. Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-5391957","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":true,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Research Article","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":378339557,"identity":"b9cbeda0-e834-4238-9927-c1d01661ca46","order_by":0,"name":"Marzia Zaman","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"CMED Health Limited","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Marzia","middleName":"","lastName":"Zaman","suffix":""},{"id":378339558,"identity":"638ae142-393e-4bca-bfa3-344cb0dbe4bc","order_by":1,"name":"Rubaiyat Alim Hridhee","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Institute of Research, Innovation, Incubation and Commercialization (IRIIC)","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Rubaiyat","middleName":"Alim","lastName":"Hridhee","suffix":""},{"id":378339559,"identity":"003e2aed-194d-4a8d-b43a-7cfba74add34","order_by":2,"name":"Refat Ahmed Bhuiyan","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Institute of Research, Innovation, Incubation and Commercialization (IRIIC)","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Refat","middleName":"Ahmed","lastName":"Bhuiyan","suffix":""},{"id":378339560,"identity":"aa8f0e7b-1469-48d9-8573-54b354d58f0b","order_by":3,"name":"Charles Aunkan Gomes","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"United International University","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Charles","middleName":"Aunkan","lastName":"Gomes","suffix":""},{"id":378339561,"identity":"88d9b8f1-e6bf-44ee-af56-ada97d5971a5","order_by":4,"name":"Md. Mashiar Rahman","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Palli Karma-Sahayak Foundation","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Md.","middleName":"Mashiar","lastName":"Rahman","suffix":""},{"id":378339562,"identity":"3ba4fb0a-e192-466f-934b-a367378005e3","order_by":5,"name":"Mohammed Shariful Sheikh","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Deakin University","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Mohammed","middleName":"Shariful","lastName":"Sheikh","suffix":""},{"id":378339563,"identity":"26717979-2cdf-4ae6-8181-3f3705e9c283","order_by":6,"name":"Farhana Sarker","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"CMED Health Limited","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Farhana","middleName":"","lastName":"Sarker","suffix":""},{"id":378339564,"identity":"da8ac283-3224-47cd-8e10-7de567cfe16d","order_by":7,"name":"Khondaker A. Mamun","email":"data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAZAAAAAyAQMAAABI0h/eAAAABlBMVEX///8AAABVwtN+AAAACXBIWXMAAA7EAAAOxAGVKw4bAAAAwUlEQVRIiWNgGAWjYNCCCgh1AExKMBgQoeUMyVoY25B5hLTotp9Oky6cZ2fPz8BjeJiHwU6eQbp5A14tZmdyt0nP3JacOLOBxwCoJdmwQeZYAX4tB4BaeLcdSDA4ANbCnMAgkYPfYWbn3wK1zDlgbw/RUk+ElhsgWxoOMG5gAGs5TIyWt5uteY4lJ844zFZwcI7BccM2gn45n7vxNk8NMMTamzd/eFNRLc9PKMQQgBlEAJ3ERqT6UTAKRsEoGAV4AACBxT6w5gjFZQAAAABJRU5ErkJggg==","orcid":"","institution":"Institute of Research, Innovation, Incubation and Commercialization (IRIIC)","correspondingAuthor":true,"prefix":"","firstName":"Khondaker","middleName":"A.","lastName":"Mamun","suffix":""}],"badges":[],"createdAt":"2024-11-05 04:08:16","currentVersionCode":1,"declarations":"","doi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-5391957/v1","doiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-5391957/v1","draftVersion":[],"editorialEvents":[],"editorialNote":"","failedWorkflow":false,"files":[{"id":69882722,"identity":"1addc9fb-36b3-474b-8444-2a88b6640754","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2024-11-26 09:23:27","extension":"pdf","order_by":1,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"manuscript-pdf","size":2288287,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"AdigitalhealthinterventionmodelusingcommunityhealthworkersfindingsfromprimaryhealthservicesinruralBangladesh.pdf","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-5391957/v1_covered_ba1e8d37-49ee-41cb-9cc8-547d28b4198f.pdf"},{"id":69378821,"identity":"8ba09434-fc90-4f5f-b6b4-0c628e0a008b","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2024-11-19 17:54:27","extension":"docx","order_by":0,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"supplement","size":251607,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"SupplementaryMaterial.docx","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-5391957/v1/8decab5cf82b8035f57f9d4b.docx"}],"financialInterests":"No competing interests reported.","formattedTitle":"A digital health intervention model using community health workers: findings from primary health services in rural Bangladesh","fulltext":[],"fulltextSource":"","fullText":"","funders":[],"hasAdminPriorityOnWorkflow":false,"hasManuscriptDocX":false,"hasOptedInToPreprint":true,"hasPassedJournalQc":"","hasAnyPriority":false,"hideJournal":true,"highlight":"","institution":"","isAcceptedByJournal":false,"isAuthorSuppliedPdf":true,"isDeskRejected":"","isHiddenFromSearch":false,"isInQc":false,"isInWorkflow":false,"isPdf":true,"isPdfUpToDate":true,"isWithdrawnOrRetracted":false,"journal":{"display":true,"email":"[email protected]","identity":"researchsquare","isNatureJournal":false,"hasQc":true,"allowDirectSubmit":true,"externalIdentity":"","sideBox":"","snPcode":"","submissionUrl":"/submission","title":"Research Square","twitterHandle":"researchsquare","acdcEnabled":true,"dfaEnabled":false,"editorialSystem":"","reportingPortfolio":"","inReviewEnabled":false,"inReviewRevisionsEnabled":true},"keywords":"Digital health inclusion, Digital Health intervention model, Clinical Decision Support System (CDSS), Non-communicable diseases (NCD), Community health workers (CHWs), Primary healthcare, Health Equity, Universal health coverage, Sustainable development goals","lastPublishedDoi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-5391957/v1","lastPublishedDoiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-5391957/v1","license":{"name":"CC BY 4.0","url":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/"},"manuscriptAbstract":"\u003cp\u003eObjective: This paper aims to understand people’s health conditions after a digital health intervention model was implemented in a rural area of Bangladesh. We analyzed the health conditions of the served population 18 months after the operation.\u0026nbsp;\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eMethods: The data presented in this paper are obtained from the model’s pilot implementation in one area in Bangladesh. Community health workers provided monthly health services at doorsteps while collecting various sociodemographic,\u0026nbsp; health, economic, and environmental data. We presented the findings from the collected data on user health. Sociodemographic and health measurement data were presented as proportions with 95% confidence intervals (CIs). Multivariate logistic regression was used to analyze the association between diseases and their respective risk factors. We compared the health vitals across three consecutive periods to determine improvements in health outcomes over time.\u0026nbsp;\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eResults: The model served 32,581 people from 7,090 households during this operation. We found that 21.76% of the served population were overweight, 8.18% had prehypertension, 16.45% had high blood glucose, and 11% children were malnourished. From the analysis of risk factors, we found that people aged \u0026gt; 40 were associated with developing hypertension, diabetes, and cardiovascular diseases(CVD). CVD was associated with hypertension and stroke. Comparative analysis of different periods showed improved BMI, BP, and MUAC. Blood glucose measurements did not show significant improvement.\u0026nbsp;\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eConclusion: The implemented model provided regular health screenings, consultancy services, and digital referrals. The features included in the model are unique and designed according to the needs of the rural population. Findings from the operation identified demographics who were at high risk of developing NCDs. The comparative analysis found a positive impact on the health conditions of the rural people who took regular health measurements.\u003c/p\u003e","manuscriptTitle":"A digital health intervention model using community health workers: findings from primary health services in rural Bangladesh","msid":"","msnumber":"","nonDraftVersions":[{"code":1,"date":"2024-11-19 17:54:22","doi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-5391957/v1","editorialEvents":[{"type":"communityComments","content":0}],"status":"published","journal":{"display":true,"email":"[email protected]","identity":"researchsquare","isNatureJournal":false,"hasQc":true,"allowDirectSubmit":true,"externalIdentity":"","sideBox":"","snPcode":"","submissionUrl":"/submission","title":"Research Square","twitterHandle":"researchsquare","acdcEnabled":true,"dfaEnabled":false,"editorialSystem":"","reportingPortfolio":"","inReviewEnabled":false,"inReviewRevisionsEnabled":true}}],"origin":"","ownerIdentity":"f9debe2f-9743-4f84-babe-476bb2d427ad","owner":[],"postedDate":"November 19th, 2024","published":true,"recentEditorialEvents":[],"rejectedJournal":[],"revision":"","amendment":"","status":"posted","subjectAreas":[],"tags":[],"updatedAt":"2024-12-09T03:53:07+00:00","versionOfRecord":[],"versionCreatedAt":"2024-11-19 17:54:22","video":"","vorDoi":"","vorDoiUrl":"","workflowStages":[]},"version":"v1","identity":"rs-5391957","journalConfig":"researchsquare"},"__N_SSP":true},"page":"/article/[identity]/[[...version]]","query":{"redirect":"/article/rs-5391957","identity":"rs-5391957","version":["v1"]},"buildId":"qtupq5eGEP_6zYnWcrvyt","isFallback":false,"isExperimentalCompile":false,"dynamicIds":[84888],"gssp":true,"scriptLoader":[]}