Artwork stating 'Education Destroys Barriers', 'We Demand Treatment', and 'I Need A Chance'

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  • Penn Medicine-created texting tool may save hundreds of new moms' lives in Philly and beyond

    After deducing that preeclampsia was "the number one cause of maternal hospital readmissions and maternal mortality," doctors at Penn Medical began sending new mothers home with a blood pressure cuff and then texting them for readings. Proving to be a successful intervention methodology, this practice has expanded to other hospitals in the state and may soon scale nationally.

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  • Public Defender Turns to Texting System to Notify Clients of Santa Barbara County Court Appointments

    California’s Santa Barbara Public Defender’s office is working with the company, Upstart, to use a texting notification system to remind people about their court dates. Upstart costs $20K to set up and then $2 per client, but has worked with counties across the country and seen a 75% drop in failure-to-appear violations. For California, the Heising-Simons Foundations is funding its implementation in seven different counties.

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  • Where Tech Is Helping People Become Better Neighbors

    From Google's India-focused app Neighbourly to the wellknown Nextdoor app, social media specifically targeted at connecting neighbors is gaining ground. Whether being used to rate neighborhood attractions, encourage borrowing or sharing of resources, report suspicious neighborhood activity or simply to find a way to make connections, these apps are aimed at decreasing social isolation and increasing community interactions.

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  • High-tech mapping, apps fight deadly dengue outbreak in Honduras

    Mobile phone apps allow NGOs to track public health threats. In Honduras, the medical charity, Medicine Sans Frontiers (MSF) uses GIS technology and mobile phone apps to assist in their efforts against dengue fever outbreaks. Apps allow residents to report outbreaks, which helps the charity apply its efforts where they are most needed. MSF also uses apps to learn about conditions in the communities it serves.

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  • Safer at sea: The unexpected benefit of traceability for small-scale fishers

    Efforts to reduce illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing also make fishermen safer at sea. Vessel Monitoring Mechanisms (VMM) and electronic catch documentation (eCDT) track the origin of fish headed to market, part of an international effort to ensure sustainable and equitable practices. Data transmission also makes fishermen safer, relaying their locations from hundreds of miles out at sea. In the Philippines, a partnership between Futuristic Aviation and Maritime Enterprise (FAME) and USAID Oceans and Fisheries Partnership helps cover subscription fees for FAME radio transmitter service.

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  • As fires rage, California refines an important skill: Evacuating

    With wildfires becoming more and more common, Californians have become improved their evacuation procedures. Alerting residents earlier via cellphone and then ongoing door-to-door notices have made a difference, along with residents trusting the evacuation calls more than before. Notable improvements have been made in hospitals, with staff making arrangements with other hospitals as soon as they receive the evacuation notice.

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  • The teens so addicted to phones they're going into detox Audio icon

    For those struggling with smartphone addiction, detox and counseling can prove beneficial. In South Korea, the government’s Ministry of Gender Equality and Family, alongside partners like the National Center for Youth Internet Addiction and the Youth Counseling and Welfare Center provide teens and elementary school students with detox programs to address the issue of internet and smartphone addiction. The students can attend summer camps where they switch off their phones, participate in activities, and attend counseling.

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  • It Takes a Teenager to Help a Teenager in Crisis

    Connecting to peers makes coping with emotional distress easier for youth. Youthline, a youth suicide crisis intervention service operated by Lines for Life puts those struggling in touch with volunteers their own age via call, text, or email. The youth volunteers are supervised by a clinician and are trained in SafeTALK and Applied Suicide Intervention Skills Training (ASIST).

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  • Fighting TB with phone calls: A project that reminded patients to take their medicine

    To remind tuberculosis patients to take their medication, hospitals in India incorporated the use of mobile phones. When patients received their medication by mail, the packaging material instructed them to call a toll-free number, which allowed the healthcare providers to check back in on those that did not call.

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  • This new program lets people text to access government food aid

    Simplifying the enrollment process makes the federal supplemental nutrition assistance program (SNAP) more accessible to those who qualify. In Anchorage, Alaska, a grant from Bloomberg Philanthropies funded a pilot program to help residents enroll in SNAP via text message. Instead of a complicated process, residents can simply text to receive information and begin their enrollment process.

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