MTV and the White House seem like strange bedfellows, but not when it comes to healthy babies. Launched in February 2010, Text4baby is a text-based pre- and postnatal health information service. Pregnant women sign up for the free service by texting BABY or the Spanish BEBE to 511411. This service is a partnership between public and private sector organizations and businesses as varied as the White House and MTV, The Department of Health and Human Services and toiletries giant Johnson and Johnson. According to the White House Office of Science and Technology, text4baby “has already delivered more than 1 million free text messages to over 36,000 moms across the country.”
Subscribers receive text messages tailored to their needs. The needs of African American, Hispanic and younger women are especially being targeted in this tech-savvy program. This is because women in these groups are more likely to go without medical care until it's time to deliver the baby. The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) places the US at number 180 in its list of infant mortality rates around the world. Countries such as Japan, Greece, Canada, Norway, Ireland and the United Kingdom all have lower rates of infant mortality than the US.
As a Wealthy Nation, United States Ranks High for Infant Mortality
According to UNICEF, there are 12 maternal deaths in the USA for every 100,000 live births. The US government has been condemned by human rights organization Amnesty International for this high mortality rate. US Amnesty executive director Larry Cox says "This country's extraordinary record of medical advancement makes its haphazard approach to maternal care all the more scandalous and disgraceful."
Text4baby Sends Health Tips to Pregnant Women
The overall goal of Text4baby is to keep expectant mothers informed, safe and healthy, to keep developing babies healthy, thus reducing infant mortality rates among vulnerable groups. Women signing up for the service text in their due date and then receive useful text messages on a regular basis for the duration of the pregnancy. According to the White House Office of Science and Technology, text4baby provides moms-to-be with “health tips, reminders, and information about community resources available to them.” This includes advice about healthy eating in pregnancy and where to receive checkups.
When the baby is born, moms continue to receive texts until the baby's first birthday. These texts typically deal with reminders for early immunizations, newborn health checks and practical matters such as the correct way to place a baby for sleeping. The National Healthy Mother’s Healthy Babies Coalition writes the texts and cell phone companies do not charge subscribers for receiving them.
Childcount+ Counts Vulnerable Children in Developing Countries
Childcount+ utilizes texting technology to keep track of vulnerable children in financially disadvantaged countries. Kenya is one of these countries and for the past seven months, Childcount has monitored “9,500+ children under-five registered into the system for malnutrition, malaria and other childhood illness,” this is in the Sauri region of Kenya alone.
Childcount+ may soon to be tracking the well-being of over 100,000 throughout Africa. According to Time magazine, there is “a network of community-health workers who regularly examine local children, treat their ills and then text back the status of every sick child they find.” Time reports that the program has received texts detailing 2,000 malaria cases and 500 instances of malnutrition.
Test Results Via Text in The UK
The use of text technology in healthcare has long been used in the United Kingdom, where the National Health Service (NHS) saves time, money and paper by texting some health test results to patients. Since 2005, many UK patients have benefited from receiving faster test results by opting to get them by text as opposed to traditional "snail mail" or waiting for a telephone call. For example, women can ask to receive sexual health and gynecology results by text.
As healthcare organizations seek new, highly efficient ways to receive and transmit information, text messaging is sure to become a staple tool in this process.
Cicely Austin - Cicely is a freelance writer with an interest in the following: social issues, cultural matters, history, movies, theatre and travel. ...
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