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Educating Mothers, Text by Text

Although New York City’s overall infant mortality rate is lower than ever, it still remains unacceptably high among certain populations. Racial, ethnic and socioeconomic inequities put some mothers at much higher risk for unhealthy pregnancy and birth outcomes. Currently, NYC’s infant mortality rate is 5.4 deaths per 1,000 births, the lowest ever recorded. However, infant mortality remains unacceptably high among Blacks (9.8 per 1,000 births) and Puerto Ricans (6.3 per 1,000 births), and in low-income neighborhoods such as Central Harlem (11.2 per 1,000 births), parts of the South Bronx (11.4 per 1,000 births), and Central Brooklyn (12.5 per 1,000 births). 

Mobile technologies are a promising way to deliver health information to populations who bear the burden of health inequities. A survey by the Pew Research Center found that Blacks and Latinos, for instance, are more likely to use text messaging to exchange information than their White counterparts.  Text4baby is the largest national mobile health initiative to date and is being launched by an unprecedented group of public and private partners. It is spearheaded by the National Healthy Mothers Healthy Babies Coalition and includes partners such as the U.S. Centers for Disease Control (CDC), the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy, U.S. Department of Health & Human Services, CTIA-The Wireless Foundation, Johnson & Johnson, Voxiva, WPP, The George Washington University, WellPoint, BabyCenter and MTV Networks.

Text4baby sends up to three text messages per week to expecting and new mothers, aligned with the stage of pregnancy or infant’s age, to promote healthy priorities for children such as good nutrition practices, vaccinations and safe sleep messages. There is no charge to recipients as costs are absorbed by participating mobile service providers.  Mothers can register simply by texting “BABY” (or “BEBE” for Spanish) to the text4baby short code (511411).

A grant from the Aetna Foundation through the Fund for Public Health in New York is enabling the NYC Health Department’s Brooklyn District Public Health Office to coordinate all Text4baby efforts in NYC during the project’s 18-month pilot phase and promote participation in the project. Participating mothers are being recruited by Health Department partners such as health care organizations and perinatal networks with significant reach into NYC’s most vulnerable communities of Black and Latino mothers. 

In addition to educating individual mothers on how to care for themselves and their children, Text4baby will demonstrate the potential for using mobile health technology to reach underserved populations on a large scale.  While addressing one critical national priority—maternal and child health—Text4baby will develop a base of evidence for tackling countless other public health issues. This project illustrates the value of public-private partnerships, where private sector seed funding can help start, develop and evaluate important innovations in promoting better health for New Yorkers.

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