Beyond Health Literacy: Navigating Boundaries and Relationships During High-risk Pregnancies. Challenges and Opportunities for Digital Health in North-West India

Few studies in HCI4D have examined the lived experiences of women with pregnancy complications. We conducted a qualitative study with 15 pregnant women to gain an in-depth understanding of the context in which pregnancy takes place and everyday experiences living with complications in rural North-West India.To complement our interviews, we conducted six focus groups with three pregnant women, three community health workers and three members of an NGO. Our study reveals insights about the challenges and experiences of the pregnant women with complications while navigating the physical, spatial, social and emotional aspects of antenatal care as part of complex and contradictory structures and settings of their everyday life. We argue that the design of digital health in support of pregnancy care for the Global South must center around supporting the navigational work done by the pregnant women and their families.