SMS Messaging Helps New Mothers Stay Healthy
New mothers face many challenges in the days and weeks following the birth of their child. Any parent will know most of them well with lack of sleep being a primary one. But many women are also at risk for postpartum preeclampsia.
Preeclampsia is a condition that can affect a woman at any time during pregnancy and the days that follow. It’s characterised by high blood pressure and extreme swelling.
Many symptoms appear as “normal” pregnancy symptoms and some are not felt at all – like high blood pressure. The only way to ensure at-risk women remain healthy and receive treatment (if necessary) is for them to attend follow up visits with their midwife or GP. In many countries, that just doesn’t happen often enough.
SMS Reminder Study In The US
A recent study performed by the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania examined how SMS messaging could help the situation. It turns out in the US, many mothers do not go to their follow up visits. The numbers differ, but somewhere between 70% and “less than half” just simply give birth and don’t visit their doctor again within the next year.
The Penn study decided to take at-risk women and offer them SMS reminders to take their blood pressure (the key indicator for preeclampsia) at home, then text back the results to their doctor.
Before leaving the hospital the women were given blood pressure monitoring equipment. Then they received SMS reminders to check their blood pressure for seven days following their discharge from the hospital.
The medical staff would review the numbers sent in by the women. If the numbers indicated a rise in blood pressure that was concerning, the woman would receive an SMS message back with instructions. She may be asked to take the numbers again, be directed to make an appointment, or to seek immediate care.
The results of the study were that 65% of the women continued to monitor their blood pressure and send in values for at least five of the seven days. Two women were identified as needing oral medications to control their increasing blood pressure.
Due to the small sample size (only 32 women), senior author of the study Sindhu Srinivas said, “Further studies are necessary to determine the widespread efficacy of adopting telemedicine platforms for obstetrics care, but by all indications, it could become a cost-conscious way to improve care for patients, allowing them the convenience of staying home and lowering their risks of readmissions or complications”.
And In Argentina...
Another study, this time in Argentina in 2012, included a survey of pregnant women. They were asked whether or not they would like to receive SMS messages about antenatal care and other pregnancy topics.
An overwhelming number of the women, 96%, said they would like to receive the messages via SMS. The average travel time to their health care provider was 43 or 57 minutes (to doctor and hospital respectively). The messages could provide valuable information about when they should seek care given their distance from the medical facilities.
The study concluded at the time, though, that SMS messaging wasn’t practical because not very many women had mobile phones. But according to eMarketer, mobile penetration in Argentina rose to just over 70% in 2015, much higher than 2012. SMS messages and reminders for pregnant women and mothers of new-borns is likely very practical at this point.
The Future
These are just two examples of how SMS messaging can be used to help improve the health of women. Extrapolating from these, you can see how it’d be useful in almost any health situation where following up with a patient in a timely fashion is crucial. This could be post-surgery, injury recovery, or illness convalescing where a trip to the GP may not be easy or practical.
The future of healthcare around the world probably includes some amount of interaction via SMS messaging. It’s a tool that can give both doctors and patients the ability to communicate and stay healthy.
Related Articles
SMS Marketing: Four Sectors Successfully Using Text Messaging
SMS marketing has seen a huge uplift in popularity in recent years, with big brands investing in the technology to better engage with their customers. There are so many benefits of SMS marketing, from the ability to directly to reach customers with your communications, to the fact that over 80% of SMS texts are read. With over approximately 90% of the world receiving mobile coverage, you’re highly likely to be able to reach your audience, regardless of where they are. SMS marketing is cost effective, and campaigns are quick to develop, in as short a time period as the time it takes to write a text message. This gives you the advantage of being able to communicate quickly, and effectively with customers, reacting to information almost instantaneously. With so many reasons to use SMS marketing, we’ve highlighted four sectors successfully using SMS messaging as case studies to highlight the advantages of investing in the technology.
Why SMS is the Perfect Tool for your ‘Beautiful Christmas’ Campaign
Christmas is coming and with it plenty of opportunities to increase your retail sales or market your services. If you're a hairdresser or beautician, you'll know how busy you get during the festive party season. It's still not too late to create an SMS campaign for Christmas and the New Year.
SMS Mаrkеtіng fоr Bеаutісіаnѕ and Spas
Help Patients Stay Healthy with SMS Reminders to Take Their Prescriptions
Last year, over 1 billion prescription items were dispensed in England. There were, on average, 19 prescription items per person in England, almost half the population is taking prescription medications. It's safe to assume some people are finding it hard to keep track, enter SMS.
How to Use SMS Messaging to Avoid False Hope Syndrome in 2017
False Hope Syndrome happens to nearly 90 % of the people who make New Year’s resolutions. People set grand, hopeful, but unreasonable goals for themselves. But if you can get yourself to focus on something specific you want to improve, SMS messaging can help you achieve it.
6 Ways Gyms Are Using SMS Marketing
Marketing for gyms and leisure centres is unlike marketing within many other industries. It's not enough to simply gain a customer and expect to keep them indefinitely. It's important to make every attempt to keep that customer dedicated and interested in achieving their fitness goals to avoid lapsed memberships and cancellations. It's in every gym's best interest to have a loyal customer base that feels supported and encouraged to attend the gym regularly. Failure to do so can result in members who feel it is a waste of money to pay for a membership that they don't use often enough. That's where SMS marketing can make a big difference.
Using SMS Messaging to Help People Quit Smoking
There’s no shortage of organisations trying to help smokers quit. These include groups that use SMS as a means of supporting smokers while they try to quit. There’s quite a lot of evidence that text messaging can help people break bad habits, or make positive improvements in their lives. Here’s one example from George Washington University.
5 Facts Your Business Should Know About A2P SMS Messaging
Is SMS messaging a good investment of your business’ time and money? A report from Mobile Ecosystem Forum shares some data on how SMS is being used, who is using it, and provides some evidence showing the answer to that question is most likely “Yes”!
Pagers vs. SMS Messaging for Emergency Services
For decades, all kinds of emergency personnel relied on pagers to communicate with each other and their organisations. The system was created long before the days of mobile phones or even text messaging. But now things are changing, as we explain in this blog post.
How to Use SMS Messaging to Keep Your Club Members Healthy
In a report released last week by Nielsen, it turns out people want more than just to see a lower number on the scale. In their study, 75% of people worldwide plan to lose weight by changing their diet. And another 72% plan to exercise – that’s where your health club and SMS comes in.