Text4baby Birthday Event Highlights Infant Health

The Text4baby San Diego Coalition is hosting a birthday party to celebrate the second anniversary of the national Text4baby program, including a health fair and baby clothing/accessory swap meet.

San Diego, CA, February 22, 2012 --(PR.com)-- The Text4baby San Diego Coalition is hosting a birthday party to celebrate the second anniversary of the national Text4baby program, including a health fair and baby clothing/accessory swap meet, on Saturday, February 25, 2012 at the Thornton Hospital Pavilion on the UCSD Medical Campus, 9300 Campus Point Drive, La Jolla from 11:00 am to 2:00 pm. The public is invited to attend free of charge (UCSD parking fee of $4.00) and bring gently used baby items to exchange or donate.

Text4baby is a free mobile health (mHealth) information service that provides pregnant women and new moms with information via text message on their health and their baby’s health and connects them with health resources. Expectant and new parents can enroll in the free text service by simply texting "Baby" (English) or "Bebe" (Spanish) to 511411. The program is free regardless of the mobile phone provider or plan.

Families and expectant mothers are encouraged to participate in the festivities, which will include presentations by leading physicians and pediatric authorities on the topics of caring for baby before, during and after birth, as well as vendor offerings, raffles, parting gift from Johnson & Johnson along with a unique blend of baby swap meet items such as baby clothing, toys and equipment. Participants will learn about the free, bi-lingual text messaging service provided by Text 4 baby and to either swap or drop off gently used baby items to be donated to a local charitable organization.

According to San Diego County Medical Society Foundation Executive Director Barbara Mandel, “Text4baby has been proven to educate and enhance pre and post-natal health for babies and mothers. We are also pleased to announce that the San Diego text4baby coalition, (chaired by SDCSMF) is one of the first groups in the county to incorporate the Text4baby referral program through All One-E-App applications in San Diego County that will enable mothers to enroll in multiple services at one time.”

In a recent study conducted by the National Latino Research Center at California State University San Marcos and the UC San Diego Department of Reproductive Medicine with support from the Alliance Healthcare Foundation, program participants reported significant benefits from the free text messaging program: 63% of participants reported that Text4baby helped them remember an appointment or immunization that they or their child needed; over 75 % of participants reported that text4baby messages informed them of medical warning signs that they did not know; and 71 % reported talking to their doctor about a topic that they read on a Text4baby message.

For additional information on the Text4baby project, visit, www.sdcmsf.org or call (858) 300-2777.

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Contact
San Diego County Medical Society Foundation
Eva Stimon
858-692-7168
www.sdcmsf.org
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