News
New Year’s Resolution Solutions: Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts has the tools to keep you on target
January 5, 2012: It’s no surprise that New Year’s resolutions quickly get kicked to the curb after the holidays. According to a TIME Special Report, getting fit, eating healthier and quitting smoking are among the Top 10 Commonly Broken New Year's Resolutions. Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts (BCBSMA) has the mobile apps and online support tools you need for a healthier New Year.
Text2QuitSM: Interim results from an ongoing study of a personalized, interactive mobile health smoking cessation program
January 5, 2012: Between May 19, 2011 and September 23, 2011, 200 participants were recruited into a randomized trial measuring smoking cessation interventions. Interim results show that the intervention group, with access to Text2Quit, was 65% more likely to be abstinent at 4 weeks compared to the control group.
Texting Service Aims At Keeping New Moms And Babies Healthy
November 22, 2011: People can use their cell phones to do almost anything these days, from finding a good restaurant, to paying their bills. An emerging service in San Diego is using cell phones to help mothers-to-be have a healthy pregnancy.
Text4baby Shows Promising Results for Moms
November 2, 2011: Text4baby, a free health education text messaging service for pregnant women and new moms, is reaching its primary target audience of medically underserved women and achieving a number of its health education goals, according to a preliminary assessment presented at the American Public Health Association annual meeting this week. The program, made possible through a broad, public-private partnership, is the first free mobile health information service in the United States and is an important example of leveraging widely used technology—in this case, cell phones—in new ways to improve the lives of Americans. Pregnant and new moms who sign up for text4baby (by texting BABY or BEBE to 511411) receive three text messages per week containing health tips and resources.
Can text messages be used to improve health outcomes?
October 12, 2011: Imagine you are trying to quit smoking. In the process, you receive a text message saying, “This is it! – QUIT DAY, throw away all your fags [cigarettes]. TODAY is the start of being QUIT forever, you can do it!” Would that text message increase the likelihood of you quitting?
Alere Wellbeing Partners with Voxiva to Offer Text2QuitSM with Quit For Life®
September 07, 2011: Today, Alere Wellbeing, Inc. (formerly Free & Clear, Inc.) and Voxiva, pioneers in their respective fields of tobacco cessation and mobile health, announced an agreement to integrate their services into one enhanced offering. Under the agreement, Alere obtains the exclusive right to offer Voxiva’s Text2Quit‐ service, enabling participants to receive up to 300 unique text messages that help keep them engaged and motivated, in conjunction with the Quit For Life® Program, its market leading tobacco cessation program.
Electronic Health Record Association Drives Support for Free Mother/Baby Information Program
September 6, 2011: The HIMSS Electronic Health Record Association (EHR Association), a collaboration of 42 EHR supplier companies, announced this week its support as an Implementation Partner of text4Baby, the first free health text messaging service in the US focused on providing information to pregnant women and new mothers, launched by the National Healthy Mothers, Health Babies Coalition. Text4Baby supports expectant mothers by providing accurate, concise health information and resources in a format that is personal and timely, using text messaging, a widely adopted channel with over 72% of mobile phone users sending or receiving text messages.
Study: Texting May Help Smokers Quit Faster
June 30, 2011: Smokers are twice as likely to succeed in quitting if they receive supportive text messages, British researchers have found. The study, published June 30 online in the British medical journal The Lancet, followed 5,800 smokers as they attempted to quit.
How Mobile Tech Can Fight War On Diabetes
June 30, 2011: As the value of technology used to fight diabetes becomes more apparent, two Department of Health and Human Services-funded projects--Southeast Michigan Beacon Community in Detroit, and the Crescent City Beacon Community in New Orleans--will launch in the fall public health campaigns that rely on mobile devices to help individuals assess their risk of type 2 diabetes and provide them with relevant health information, such as local health and wellness resources.
American Diabetes Association Uses Information Technology to Improve Diabetes Prevention, Management in Beacon Communities
June 25, 2011: The American Diabetes Association, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC) have joined forces in a nationwide program to increase the use of health information technology (IT) in helping individuals better prevent and manage diabetes and its complications, with a special emphasis focusing on campaigns launching this fall in Detroit and New Orleans, the groups announced at a press conference at the American Diabetes Association's 71st Scientific Sessions®.
Text2Quit Launch Follows Text4Baby's Lead
June 9, 2011: From the mobile health company that developed Text4Baby, arguably the best known mobile health service (and certainly the one with the most partners), comes Text2Quit, a smoking cessation program. Voxiva says the service makes use of text messages, emails and the web along with evidence-based best practices from the Surgeon General and peer-reviewed studies.
Voxiva Announces the Launch of Text2Quit
June 8, 2011: Recently named one of the 50 Most Innovative Companies in the world by Fast Company, Voxiva,Inc. announced today the availibility of Text2QuitSM, a highly interactive and novel approach to smoking cessation. Developed in collaboration with The George Washington University School of Public Health and Health Services, Text2Quit utilizes a multi-channel approach by combining evidence-based best practices for smoking cessation with innovative use of mobile and web technologies.
Fast Company Names Voxiva One of the 50 Most Innovative Companies
February 16, 2011: Fast Company's annual Most Innovative Companies issue today named Voxiva the 40th most innovative company in the world for “encouraging good health via mobile apps,” reinforcing Voxiva’s leadership position in the mobile health field. Voxiva joins major companies including Apple (#1), Facebook (#3), Intel (#19), Amazon (#27), PepsiCo (#33), Microsoft (#37), Samsung (#43) and GE (#45) on the Top 50 list.
Making the Text-to-Mom Connection
February 11th, 2011: A New York Times column discusses lessons learned from Text4baby’s unique partnership structure and the impact of using mobile text messaging as the foundation technology to reach the broadest audience of pregnant women and new mothers.
Mothers-to-Be Are Getting the Message
February 7th, 2011: One year since the launch of text4baby, the New York Times reviews the program’s success to date. “What makes Text4baby notable is not the idea itself, but its execution. We often hear about “public private” partnerships as a potential answer to social problems. Most of the time the words amount to little more than a press release….[Text4baby] seems to have evolved a spirit of mutual appreciation — with leaders taking pains to acknowledge everyone’s contributions.”
Mobile Phones Become Tools of Health Promotion
November 12th, 2010: The Washington Post discusses the idea of monitoring patients and promoting healthy behavior through mobile phones and how Voxiva is demonstrating leadership and impact through the Text4baby program. "The best solutions combine different technologies to interact with the same person in different ways about different information."
Text4baby Announces Plans to Reach One Million Moms: Commitment from Johnson & Johnson Enables Growth of Nation's Largest Mobile Health Initiative
November 9th, 2010: The National Healthy Mothers, Healthy Babies Coalition (HMHB) announces the Text4baby program is poised to engage thousands of additional partners in communities at risk and aims to serve one million mothers by 2012.
Voxiva Inc. and PositiveID Corporation Announce a Partnership to Offer an Integrated Mobile Diabetes Solution Combining Mobile Glucometer Technology with a Mobile-Based Diabetes Management Program
November 9th, 2010: Voxiva and PositiveID partner to create a combined solution that allows diabetics to use mobile technology to capture glucose readings, receive instant feedback on results, monitor weight, cholesterol and other bio markers, and have tailored education content based on their results delivered directly to their mobile phone.
Health Mobile App Wins Innovation Award
August 9th, 2010: Text4baby is honored with a U.S. Department of Health and Human Services HHS Innovates Award presented by HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius at a ceremony in Washington, DC.
Text Alerts for Baby Care
March 31st, 2010: “Tuesday at 2:04 p.m., I received the following text message: ‘Congratulations! You made it through your first trimester! Your risk of losing the baby is lower now, and nausea and tiredness may be getting better….
Take Two Texts and Call Me in the Morning
May 3rd, 2010: Time Magazine report how in an effort to reduce the U.S. infant-mortality rate — which is currently 30th worldwide, worse than Hungary's and Cuba's — public-health advocates are tapping an unlikely resource: the cell phone.
When Your Carpet Calls Your Doctor
April 8th, 2010: The Economist discusses how the coming convergence of wireless communications, social networking, and medicine will transform health care, and features Voxiva’s efforts in mobile health.
Voxiva Launches U.S. Text Service to Aid Pregnant Women
February 9th, 2010: The Washington Post discusses how the free Text4baby program sends tips to expectant mothers who opt in to receive pregnancy-related text messages on their cell phones. Operated by Voxiva, the service reported 6,500 enrollees in the first 24 hours.
U.S. Chief Technology Officer Announces Launch of First Free Mobile Health Service for Pregnant Women, New Mothers
February 4th, 2010: The new service, announced by U.S. Chief Technology Officer Aneesh Chopra at a health technology conference in Washington, D.C., aims to use one of the most widely used technologies in America—the mobile phone—to promote maternal and child health. Information provided to moms through Text4baby will help them take care of their health and give their babies the best possible start in life.
Verizon Wireless Supports Text4baby Program
February 4th, 2010: Verizon announces support for first-ever free mobile health service, Text4baby, to provide health tips to pregnant women, new moms, and addresses rising U.S. infant mortality rates.
First Free Nationwide Mobile Health Information Service Developed by Voxiva Now Available to Promote Maternal and Child Health
February 4th, 2010: Voxiva, a global leader in mobile health information services, announces the launch of text4baby, the first free mobile health service in the United States. The service, which is designed to improve maternal and child health by sending timely and relevant health information directly to mothers' personal mobile phones, is built on Voxiva's interactive mobile health platform which is used around the world to engage and support people in managing their health conditions and live healthier lives.
Cell-Phone Medicine Brings Care To Patients In Developing Nations
February 2010: Health Affairs discusses Voxiva’s mobile-based HIV/AIDS (VidaNET), diabetes (DiabeDiario), and hypertension (CardioNET) service in Mexico and how it is used to improve the health of its citizens. As many countries or regions leapfrog over the land-line stage of telecommunications and go directly to cellular, they are tapping mobile technologies to transform their health systems.
A Doctor in Your Pocket
April 16th, 2009: A special report in The Economist discusses how developing countries are using mobile phones to leapfrog to personalized medicine.
BBC Podcast: "Texting Disease Away"
June 2nd, 2009: BBC News discusses how Voxiva’s Alerta DISAMAR, a mobile phone-based surveillance solution, is helping the Peruvian navy to report disease outbreaks and ask for help with treatment.
How Technology Can Improve the U.S. Health Care System
October 24th, 2008: A New York Times article discusses lessons learned from Voxiva’s mobile health programs in South America and how it can be applied to the U.S. health care system.
Cellphones Open Front in Fight Against Disease
March 4th, 2007: A New York Times article discusses how Voxiva has built disease surveillance systems for individual health workers to send reports by cell phone directly from the field. Voxiva's system has been deployed in the Amazon basin, in Indonesia for avian flu reporting, and in India to test a new drug for leishmaniasis, a disease spread by sand flies.
Mobiles 'To Help Track Diseases'
October 17th, 2006: A BBC News article on Voxiva’s mobile phone that was developed to help manage the spread of diseases such as HIV and bird flu. Voxiva’s system is designed to allow field workers using handsets to send and receive data on disease outbreaks along with patient and drug information.
Tech Company Helps Monitor Disease Outbreaks
March 8th, 2004: USA Today provides an early history of Voxiva and starting with a disease surveillance program in Peru.