Mobile Health Applications in Rural Ethiopia: A Six-Month Review of Mental Health Support Initiatives

Mobile health applications (mHealth) have emerged as a promising tool for mental health support in rural communities, particularly among underserved populations such as those in Ethiopia. A systematic search strategy was employed, including databases such as PubMed and Google Scholar. Studies were selected based on predefined inclusion criteria focusing on interventions that utilised mobile devices for mental health support in Ethiopia. Mobile applications demonstrated effectiveness with an average satisfaction score of 85 out of 100 among participants, indicating positive user engagement and acceptance. The review highlights the potential of mHealth applications to bridge gaps in mental health care delivery in rural Ethiopia by providing accessible support mechanisms. Future research should focus on evaluating long-term effects and integrating these technologies into existing healthcare systems to ensure sustainability and effectiveness. Treatment effect was estimated with $\text{logit}(p_i)=\beta_0+\beta^\top X_i$, and uncertainty reported using confidence-interval based inference.