Text4Baby (or Bebe)

This seems to be one of the more successful texting programs in the healthcare space.  This public-private partnership with sponsors like J&J and Pfizer is leveraging texting technology to try to address the US infant mortality rate (with is 30th worldwide).

With 25% of people not having a landline and more and more people (especially younger generations) depending upon the mobile phone, this makes a lot of sense.  In general, the sick population for the healthcare companies are not the younger generations, but this is typically different for pregnancy.  What I didn’t know until reading an article about this is that Hispanics and African Americans are 2.5x as likely at Whites to put off prenatal care until the 3rd trimester or skip it altogether. 

So what do you do?  Text BABY (or BEBE) to 511411 and punch in your due date.

Who writes the content?  The National Healthy Mothers, Healthy Babies Coalition.

Is there a charge?  No.

What is the content?  You get up to 3 texts a week until the baby’s first birthday.  They talk about seeing their doctor.  Keeping their appointments.  Get immunizations.  Put babies on their backs to sleep. 

What do they hope to learn?  Will users have different outcomes?  Will they go to more appointments?  Will they stop smoking?  Will the incidents of low birth weight and pre-maturity decline?