Submission ID 118356
| Issue/Objective | Humanitarian responses are challenged by a lack of up-to-date data to accurately inform resource allocation and health support for the diverse and ever-changing migrant populations traversing the Darien Jungle. The use of mobile health (mHealth) interventions is a recognized strategy to more responsively assess and respond to populations needs in humanitarian settings. In 2024, Queen's University, 3iS solutions, and Balcony partnered to trial Balcony.io, an innovative and anonymous geo-messaging mobile app, to facilitate two-way communication between migrants in transit through the Darien Jungle and humanitarian personnel (Polaris project). Despite 78% of enrolled participants reporting a need for information accessible via Balcony, overall interaction with the platform was limited and declined rapidly over time. These engagement patterns are comparable to other mHealth interventions which frequently encounter implementation and scale-up challenges. We aim to reflect on the implementation of Balcony.io and the Polaris project using the newly defined TRIMI implementation framework to identify lessons learned from the implementing and research partners' perspectives. |
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| Methodology/Approach | The TRIMI framework guides our reflection. Debrief group discussions will be conducted with all implementing and research partners, followed by a rapid qualitative analysis, mapping of planning and implementation activities to framework constructs, cross-checking findings to ensure they resonate with field experiences, and disseminating our findings. |
| Results | Data collection and analysis is ongoing at submission time. The anticipated outcomes from this work include 1) lessons learned from the Polaris project implementation, 2) assessing the newly defined TRIMI framework using a real-world case study, and 3) recommendations for future projects, particularly those involving geomessaging and/or migration response. |
| Discussion/Conclusion | Implementation and scaling of digital interventions is a recognized challenge, which may be more complex for cross-border interventions aimed at migrating populations. While theoretical frameworks highlight important considerations including monetary incentives for data/phone credit, delivering these incentives in practice is challenging, particularly when target populations are transiting through multiple countries. Reporting and reflecting on lessons from the field using the TRIMI framework as a guide offers important additions to the literature to support and inform future digital health interventions targeting migrant populations. |
| Presenters and affiliations | Ana Krause University of Washington Jodie Pritchard Queen's University Andrés Clavijo 3iS Daniela Carrasco 3iS Maria Alejandra Olarte 3iS David Hammel Balcony.io Ricardo Ramos Balcony.io Amanda Collier Queen's University Julianna Deutscher Queen's University Mohamed Albirair University of Washington Susan A. Bartels Queen's University |
