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BACKGROUND Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women have access to and interest in mobile health (mHealth), although few culturally relevant, evidence-based mHealth programs are available. We codeveloped an mHealth program in New South Wales with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women, focusing on women’s and children's health and well-being. OBJECTIVE This study aims to assess the engagement with and acceptability of the Growin’ Up Healthy Jarjums program among mothers caring for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children aged METHODS Women were given access to Growin’ Up Healthy Jarjums—a web-based application, a Facebook (Meta Platforms, Inc) page, and SMS text messages—for 4 weeks. Short videos of health professionals presenting health information were tested within the application and on the Facebook page. Engagement with the application was examined through the number of log-ins, page views, and links used on the application. Engagement with the Facebook page was examined through likes, follows, comments, and the reach of posts. Engagement with the SMS text messages was examined through the number of mothers who opted out, and engagement with the videos was examined through the number of plays and videos watched and duration of the video watched. The acceptability of the program was examined through posttest interviews with mothers and focus groups with professionals. RESULTS A total of 47 participants joined the study (n=41, 87%, mothers and n=6, 13%, health professionals). Interviews were completed by 78% (32/41) of the women and 100% (6/6) health professionals. Of the 41 mothers, 31 (76%) women accessed the application, 13 (42%) scrolled the main page only, and 18 (58%) clicked on other pages. There were 48 plays and 6 completions of the 12 videos. The Facebook page received 49 page likes and 51 followers. The post with the most reach was a supportive and affirming cultural post. No participants opted out of the SMS text messages. Almost all mothers (30/32, 94%) reported that Growin’ Up Healthy Jarjums was useful, and all mothers reported that the program was culturally appropriate and easy to use. Of the 32 mothers, 6 (19%) mothers reported technical problems with accessing the application. Moreover, 44% (14/32) of mothers suggested improvements to the application. All the women reported that they would recommend the program to other families. CONCLUSIONS This study demonstrated that the Growin’ Up Healthy Jarjums program was perceived useful and culturally appropriate. SMS text messages had the highest engagement, followed by the Facebook page and then the application. This study identified areas for technical and engagement-related improvements to the application. A trial is needed to assess the effectiveness of the Growin’ Up Healthy Jarjums program at improving health outcomes.

BACKGROUND Despite their growing popularity, there are very few mobile health (mHealth) interventions for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people that are culturally safe and evidence based. A co-design approach is considered a suitable methodology for developing health interventions with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. OBJECTIVE The aim of this study was to co-design an mHealth intervention to improve health knowledge, health behaviors, and access to health services for women caring for young Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children. METHODS Aboriginal researchers led engagement and recruitment with health services and participants in 3 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities in New South Wales, Australia. Focus groups and interviews were facilitated by researchers and an app developer to gather information on 3 predetermined themes: design characteristics, content modules, and features and functions. Findings from the co-design led to the development of an intervention prototype. Theories of health behavior change were used to underpin intervention components. Existing publicly available evidence-based information was used to develop content. Governance was provided by an Aboriginal advisory group. RESULTS In total, 31 mothers and 11 health professionals participated in 8 co-design focus groups and 12 interviews from June 2019 to September 2019. The 6 design characteristics identified as important were credibility, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander designs and cultural safety, family centeredness, supportive, simple to use, and confidential. The content includes 6 modules for women’s health: Smoke-free families, Safe drinking, Feeling good, Women’s business, Eating, and Exercising. The content also includes 6 modules for children’s health: Breathing well; Sleeping; Milestones; Feeding and eating; Vaccinations and medicines; and Ears, eyes, and teeth. In addition, 6 technology features and functions were identified: content feed, social connection, reminders, rewards, communication with health professionals, and use of videos. CONCLUSIONS An mHealth intervention that included app, Facebook page, and SMS text messaging modalities was developed based on the co-design findings. The intervention incorporates health behavior change theory, evidence-based information, and the preferences of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women and health professionals. A pilot study is now needed to assess the acceptability and feasibility of the intervention.