text4baby Paula Curran, PHN, MHA Nurse Consultant III MCAH Division

What is text4baby? Educational program of the National Healthy Mothers, Healthy Babies Coalition (HMHB) Free mobile information service designed to promote maternal and child health Provides pregnant women and new moms with information on how to take care of themselves and their babies

text4baby Goals Demonstrate the potential of mobile health technology to: – maternal and child health – reach underserved populations with critical health information Develop a base of evidence on the efficacy of mobile health interventions Catalyze new models for public-private partnerships in the area of mobile health

Text4baby Partners text4baby is made possible through a broad public-private partnership that includes government, corporations, academic institutions, professional associations, tribal agencies and non-profit organizations

Why Go Mobile? (From National text4baby Presentation) 90% of Americans have cell phones 18% of U.S. households are “mobile-only” 1 trillion short message service (SMS) messages sent in U.S. in 2008 Mobile phones are important in reaching the main target audience for text4baby: –Younger women –Lower-income women –Women of color Many more of these women have phone than Internet access and an overwhelming percentage use SMS

What is text4baby? Launched nationally on February 4, 2010 Provides free text messages to pregnant women and new mothers on topics such as: –Maternal and child health –Prevention of birth defects –Immunizations and seasonal flu –Nutrition –Mental health –Substance use –Safe sleep and infant safety –Resource information for prenatal and infant care

What is text4baby? The messages are timed to a woman’s due date and continue for the first year of the baby’s life Sign up for the service by texting BABY (or BEBE for Spanish) to The service collects phone number, zip code and due date or the baby’s birth date

Sample Pregnancy Messages Starter message - For a healthy baby, visit a doctor or midwife early & keep all of your appointments. Hear your baby’s heartbeat. See how fast she grows! Week 24 – Call your doctor right away if you have signs of preterm labor: cramps, belly tightening, low back pain, bleeding or watery pink/brown discharge.

Sample Infant Messages Newborn – Keeping baby’s umbilical cord uncovered & dry helps it heal. Let the stump fall off on its own. Give your baby a sponge bath until the stump falls off. Month 6 – Your baby is 6 months old! She should recognize faces, take turns “talking” with you, roll both ways, sit & even try to stand & bounce with support.

How is text4baby Being Evaluated? Recently, HRSA awarded a grant to Mathematica to evaluate the program over the next 2 years Looking at the impact of text4baby and the effectiveness of mobile health technology in delivering quality healthcare information to underserved populations

text4baby Outreach Partners Sign an MOU with the HMHB Coalition agreeing to abide by graphics guidelines and promote the service Partners receive access to the logo and Adobe InDesign art files for customization, recognition on the website and free promotional materials while supplies last There are no costs associated with being a partner

Examples of Promotional Activities Add text4baby information to your website Including text4baby information in mailings, listserv or newsletters Display posters promoting text4baby Promote text4baby through public health or wellness campaigns Encouraging use among your employees

Examples of Promotional Activities Text4baby has a weekly Tuesday e-newsletter Receive weekly updates about the program, enrollment information, media coverage and partner activities http//eepurl.com/h9h3

text4baby Activities in California (Data Provided by text4baby) As of October 22, 2010, California had an average of 1.0% of total enrollees (weighted by average expected pregnancies per year) As of October 22, 2010, California had 7,810 enrollees

text4baby Activity in California (Data Provided by text4baby)

text4baby Activity in California (provided by Text4Baby)

text4baby Activities in California text4baby enrollees are given the State MCAH Toll-Free telephone number to call for assistance The calls are answered at the State and referred to a Nurse Consultant (NC) The NC contacts the caller and refers her/him to their local MCAH Toll-Free telephone number Local MCAH Programs follow-up on enrollee needs or questions

Local text4baby Activities San Diego County Mono County San Luis Obispo

Thank You! General Inquiries