Pregnancy
From OB/GYN to entrepreneur: the Kenyan doctor rethinking maternal health
Maternal and newborn deaths are still a major public health problem in Kenya
Kenya has one of the highest maternal mortality rates in the world. In 2020, the maternal mortality ratio in the East African country was 530 deaths per 100,000 live births – much higher than the global average of 223 maternal deaths per 100,000 live births. The ratio of babies who die in the first month of life is also higher than the global average.
However, as Dr Lorraine Muluka, a Nairobi-based OB-GYN and founder of the health tech start-up Malaica, has found out, most of these deaths can be prevented if women have access to safe and affordable maternal health services.
Here, the consultant-turned-entrepreneur tells us why she thinks innovation will prove to be essential in bridging the health gaps in the Kenyan healthcare system.
Hi Lorraine, could you tell us a bit more about your background?
My name is Dr Lorraine Muluka and I am an OB-GYN. I am also the co-founder and CEO of Malaica, a health tech start-up that focuses on maternal health in Kenya. I hold a master’s degree in medicine in obstetrics and gynaecology from the University of Nairobi and have worked in various private and mission hospitals in Kenya’s maternal healthcare sector.
Over the past decade, I have been involved in several healthcare start-ups, driven by my passion for innovating and improving the Kenyan healthcare system. I have also been practising as a consultant obstetrician at my private practice in Nairobi. In 2021, I decided to fully commit to my vision of improving maternal health in Kenya by co-founding Malaica.
What inspired you to create Malaica?
The birth of Malaica was driven by a shared passion by the co-founders for safe motherhood and an aspiration to transform the narrative of maternal and neonatal mortality ratios in Sub-Saharan Africa.
Personally, as an OB-GYN several times it was very frustrating seeing mothers lose their lives to preventable causes. A need to fix the gaps and delays in maternal healthcare that lead to poor pregnancy outcomes is at the core of Malaica and the inspiration behind its creation.
The delays women experience begin with a woman’s decision to seek care, extend to her access to the appropriate healthcare facility and also the quality of care she receives once there. These gaps result from the various challenges women face which include limited access to quality care, lack of continuous support and high healthcare costs among others.
By recognising and addressing these gaps, Malaica aims to provide a holistic, affordable, and supportive environment for expectant mothers, ultimately improving maternal and neonatal health outcomes.
How would you describe Malaica in a few words?
Malaica provides a dedicated online support team for expectant mothers, making the journey of pregnancy happier, more affordable, and safer. With Malaica by their side, expectant mothers can rely on the invaluable companionship and guidance they need throughout their pregnancy.
What makes Malaica different?
Malaica offers a unique approach to pregnancy support that focuses on the holistic wellbeing of expectant mothers, including physical health, mental wellness, and delivery readiness. Our online platform offers personalised care for each woman at an affordable cost, with a personal nurse midwife assigned to provide support throughout pregnancy.
We provide access to obstetricians/gynaecologists, educational content, and a nurturing online community moderated by supamums for peer support. In Nairobi, we offer both virtual and in-person ANC clinics and birth preparation classes.
What sets us apart is our unwavering empathy, creating a warm and supportive environment for expectant mothers. Malaica adapts to evolving needs, making us the ideal choice for pregnancy support.
Women’s health comes with a lot of stigma. How has this impacted you as a founder?
In all my years of practising medicine, especially in obstetrics and gynaecology, I have noticed that there is a lot of stigma surrounding women’s health, especially during pregnancy. This stigma can take many forms, from societal taboos to misunderstandings about women’s health issues. Sometimes, it’s challenging to remove these barriers and create an open and supportive environment where soon-to-be mothers can access the care and assistance they need.
However, this awareness of the problem has become a powerful motivation for me. It has encouraged me to work even harder to break down these obstacles and create a safe space where women can receive the care and support, they require without being judged. It has reinforced Malaica’s commitment to empathy and understanding, ensuring that we remain a platform that is free from stigma, where mothers-to-be can access the care and guidance they need with dignity and respect.
What obstacles have you encountered on this journey?
As pioneers in the industry, we face a unique set of challenges as a remote company. One of our main challenges is proving to potential clients that our services are genuine and essential. We also strive to provide high-quality care while managing costs, which can be difficult for affordable programs like Malaica’s.
Providing physical services in remote or underserved areas poses a logistical challenge, especially considering the competitiveness of the healthcare and pregnancy support industry. Many other providers are offering similar services, so we must work hard to stand out.
As a tech company, we require ongoing technological investments and cybersecurity measures to maintain a reliable online platform for our subscription program and telehealth services.
Another challenge we face is health education. Educating expectant mothers about the importance of maternal health and the services available to them can be difficult, particularly in areas with limited health literacy.
Finally, ensuring the financial sustainability of the business, especially when offering affordable subscription programs, can be quite challenging. However, social enterprises like Malaica play a vital role in improving maternal health and supporting expectant mothers. Our dedication to our mission can lead to positive outcomes for both the business and the community it serves.
What lessons have you learned?
My journey as the founder of Malaica has taught me several vital lessons. I’ve come to understand that empathy is the cornerstone of effective support for mums-to-be. Recognising the diversity of experiences among our users and tailoring our services accordingly is crucial.
Building a strong community of support through supamums and support groups is powerful. The world of women’s health is ever-evolving, necessitating continuous adaptation and improvement.
Challenging the stigma surrounding women’s health is essential, and affordability should never be compromised. Collaboration with experts enhances the quality of care, and unwavering passion fuels dedication to our mission. These lessons guide our commitment to making pregnancy safe, convenient, and stigma-free for women worldwide.
Where are you with Malaica now?
Malaica has come a long way since its inception. We are now a reliable and easily accessible online platform for pregnancy support services, with a reach across the nation. Our commitment to providing comprehensive care, including access to nurse midwives, specialists like gynaecologists, paediatricians, psychologists, and support groups, has cemented our position as a go-to resource for expecting mothers. We strive to eliminate the stigma surrounding women’s health and continue to evolve and grow.
Malaica’s commitment to affordability and inclusivity ensures that we remain a beacon of support for women worldwide. Although our journey is ongoing, we are proud of the progress we have made.
Where do you see the company in the future?
We are committed to expanding Malaica’s reach and improving the pregnancy journey for expectant mothers in Kenya and beyond. Our ultimate goal is to ensure that even more mothers have access to better support and care throughout their pregnancy.
As a health tech company, we will continue to leverage advanced technology for telehealth services, making our services more accessible and convenient, especially for mothers in remote areas.
We also aim to foster connections among mothers and provide a strong network of emotional support through our expanding community of expectant mothers. Additionally, we are building partnerships with healthcare institutions, NGOs, and government bodies to strengthen our impact on maternal health and reach underserved populations.
Education and advocacy are major challenges in the pregnancy healthcare space, and we will continue to engage in initiatives that raise awareness about maternal health issues and promote healthy pregnancy practices.
Overall, we are optimistic about Malaica’s future as we adapt to the changing healthcare landscape and provide essential support to expectant mothers.
Dr Lorraine Muluka holds a master’s degree in medicine with a specialisation in obstetrics and gynaecology. Driven by a passion for improving the Kenyan healthcare system through innovation, Dr Muluka has played significant roles in several healthcare start-ups over the past decade, while also maintaining her role as a consultant obstetrician at her private practice in Nairobi. At the end of 2021, Muluka co-founded the health tech start-up Malaica. She is currently serving as the CEO of the company.
A £50m maternity consortium will bring together UK clinicians, researchers and communities to tackle the most critical gaps in maternal care.
Funding from the National Institute for Health and Care Research has established the NIHR Inequalities Challenge: Maternity Disparities Consortium under the leadership of the University of Birmingham and Newcastle University.
Higher education bodies, NHS organisations, community groups and voluntary organisations from across the UK will work together through the programme.
The NIHR has committed £50m over five years to support research led by clinicians, researchers and communities across the consortium.
Professor Joht Singh Chandan, consortium co-lead for research at the University of Birmingham, said: “National attention on maternity safety and equity has never been greater, but ambition must now be matched by evidence and implementation.
“Through this consortium, we will work across the UK to understand what works, for whom and in what contexts, and to ensure that research leads to practical changes in care for the women, babies and families who need them most.”
The launch comes at a pivotal moment for UK maternity care, with growing national attention on improving safety, equity and women’s experiences of care.
The government’s renewed Women’s Health Strategy highlights the need to improve care before and between pregnancies for underserved communities.
Against that backdrop, the consortium will generate the evidence, interventions and research capacity needed to help turn national ambition into practical improvements for women, babies and families.
University of Birmingham is leading work to improve maternity care pathways across the antenatal, intrapartum and postnatal periods.
Antenatal care covers pregnancy before labour, while intrapartum care refers to care during labour and birth.
The consortium will examine how women and families can be better supported before pregnancy and between pregnancies.
This includes improving access to advice and care that can help people prepare for pregnancy, manage existing health conditions and reduce risks before they build up.
Other research will focus on improving care during pregnancy, birth and the early weeks after birth.
This will include work on major causes of poor maternal health, such as high blood pressure, diabetes in pregnancy, obesity, perinatal mental health and complications during recovery after birth.
Professor Judith Rankin OBE, consortium co-lead for research and capacity development at Newcastle University, said: “This funding represents a critical opportunity to make the step change we need to improve outcomes for women and their babies.
“Alongside the research, the Consortium will be investing in tomorrow’s research leaders today to ensure we have the capacity to deliver on improving pregnancy outcomes, access to, and experience of, care.”
The University of Liverpool has secured £1.8m to test a device for postpartum bleeding and launch a new women’s health studio.
The PPH Butterfly is designed to help control postpartum haemorrhage, which is severe bleeding after childbirth and a leading cause of maternal death worldwide.
The funding will support research into how the device can be used in clinical practice and generate evidence to inform its wider adoption.
The university has launched the Women’s Health Innovation Studio, known as the WIN Studio, alongside the project.
The £1.8m initiative is predominantly funded by the National Institute for Health and Care Research, which is providing £1.5m, with additional support from the university.
The PPH Butterfly project will involve a multi-centre clinical trial across the UK and a global feasibility study looking at how practical it would be to use the device in different healthcare settings.
The WIN Studio is led by Andrew Weeks, professor of international maternal health care at the University of Liverpool and a senior investigator at the National Institute for Health and Care Research, and Dr Teesta Dey, a tenure track fellow in the department of women’s and children’s health.
Dr Dey will also lead the PPH Butterfly project.
Its work will cover conditions linked to female biology, including endometriosis, menopause and pregnancy-related complications.
It will also support technologies for diseases that affect women differently or disproportionately, even when they are not usually classed as gender-specific conditions.
Dr Dey said: “Women’s health has often been marginalised within healthcare systems and innovation markets, resulting in treatments, devices and care models that fail to adequately account for women’s specific needs. WIN Studio seeks to change this status quo and reconfigure how health technologies are conceived and delivered.
“The funding from NIHR for this £1.8m project is precisely the kind of innovation the WIN Studio exists to foster: clinically urgent, women-centred, and with the potential to save lives at scale.”
The studio recently hosted an event at Liverpool Women’s University Hospital as part of the Liverpool City Region Combined Authority’s Innovation Investment Fortnight.
Seven innovations are currently undergoing clinical testing through the studio, with three developed internally.
The studio will work closely with NHS University Hospitals Liverpool Group and provide clinical, regulatory and commercial support to people developing women’s health technologies.
It will also involve patients and members of the public in shaping research priorities and product development.
Its wider programme includes collaborations involving clinicians, engineers, economists, academics and policymakers.
The project team says the PPH Butterfly is a simple, low-cost device designed to control severe bleeding quickly and with minimal training.
According to the team, postpartum haemorrhage causes around 70,000 deaths globally each year, equal to about one death every seven minutes.
The device previously received £1.1m in funding from the National Institute for Health and Care Research.
The latest £1.5m grant will support a randomised UK trial, in which participants are allocated to different treatment groups by chance, and a global feasibility assessment.
Weeks said: “In an area where women face deep health inequalities, WIN Studio has a vital role to play. By working in partnership with the NHS, local government and communities, we can ensure that research leads to real-world impact.
“Liverpool has a highly integrated ecosystem of academic, clinical and commercial expertise. By bringing these together under a single platform, the WIN Studio aims to act as a national exemplar for equitable health innovation. Transforming the way medical technologies are developed is essential to addressing gender disparities in healthcare outcomes.”
Another product supported by the university, the LifeStart Trolley, has already reached commercialisation.
The small mobile resuscitation trolley allows newborn care to be carried out at the bedside while the baby’s umbilical cord remains intact, enabling delayed cord clamping.
Delayed cord clamping means waiting before cutting the cord so blood can continue flowing from the placenta to the baby after birth.
Clinical trials conducted around 10 years ago found that life-saving care could be provided successfully at the bedside using the trolley.
It was later commercialised by Inspiration Healthcare and is now used in more than 70 UK maternity units and in 36 countries, including Norway, Italy and the US.
Type 2 diabetes diagnoses are rising twice as fast in women under 40 as in women over 40, new data shows.
Type 2 diabetes is a serious condition and can lead to complications such as heart attacks and strokes. When it develops in younger people, it can be more aggressive and have more severe and acute effects.
Diagnoses in women under 40 rose by 47 per cent between 2017/18 and 2023/24. By comparison, diagnoses rose by 22 per cent in women aged 40 to 79.
During the same period, type 2 diabetes diagnoses in men under 40 increased by 34 per cent.
Diabetes UK said it is concerned about the follow-up care offered to women who have had gestational diabetes, also known as GDM, which increases the risk of developing type 2 diabetes after pregnancy.
Gestational diabetes is high blood sugar that develops during pregnancy and usually goes away after birth, but it raises the risk of type 2 diabetes later.
Colette Marshall, chief executive at Diabetes UK, said: “These figures should be a wake-up call. Type 2 diabetes is rising twice as fast in younger women compared to older women, and a crucial opportunity for prevention is being missed. Every diagnosis is life-changing, but when it develops in younger people, type 2 diabetes is even more aggressive.
“Pregnancy shouldn’t be a pathway to ill health. Yet despite facing a much higher risk of type 2 diabetes, too many women with GDM receive little or no follow-up care after pregnancy.
“As the Government turns its Strategy into action, support for women who have had gestational diabetes must not be overlooked.”
Last year, the NHS published the first national GDM audit for England in 2024/25, which revealed inconsistencies in follow-up care.
Only 57 per cent of women with GDM received an annual HbA1c test, which should be offered to every woman with GDM.
An HbA1c test measures average blood sugar levels over the previous two to three months.
Only 4.5 per cent of women had received support through the NHS Diabetes Prevention Programme.
The report also found that 11 per cent of women developed prediabetes within five years of having GDM, while 15 per cent developed type 2 diabetes within 10 years.
Prediabetes means blood sugar levels are higher than normal and a person has a higher risk of developing type 2 diabetes.
A recent survey funded by Diabetes UK also found that more than a third of women with GDM felt abandoned by healthcare services after giving birth.
If you live in England and have had gestational diabetes, you can self-refer to the NHS Diabetes Prevention Programme, which supports people at risk of developing type 2 diabetes. If you live in Northern Ireland, Scotland or Wales, you can speak to your GP about support.
Diabetes UK has written to women’s health minister Baroness Merron calling for urgent improvements to postnatal support for those diagnosed with GDM during pregnancy.
GDM affects between 10 and 20 per cent of pregnant women, but Diabetes UK said cases have long been underreported and UK-wide data on the condition has not been readily available.
The charity said poor follow-up care for women who have had GDM may be contributing to rising rates of type 2 diabetes in younger women.
It is calling for consistent postnatal follow-ups for women after GDM, more referrals to the NHS Diabetes Prevention Programme, greater accountability for improvements in postnatal care, and action on inequalities affecting women from deprived and minority ethnic communities.
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