Community health workers and a digital phone system to help babies get first-year checkups on time
Leveraging community health workers and a responsive digital health system to improve rates and timeliness of child well visits in the first year of life
Community health workers plus a responsive mobile system aim to help infants get their recommended well visits on schedule during their first year.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | University of South Carolina at Columbia NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Columbia, United States) |
| Project ID | NIH-11184282 on NIH RePORTER |
What this research studies
If you are a caregiver of a newborn, this project uses community health workers and mobile phone tools to spot babies who might miss routine checkups. A machine-learning tool will flag children at higher risk of missed or delayed visits, and trained CHWs will follow up with reminders, support, and targeted outreach. The team builds on earlier programs that used mobile reminders and incentives and will track whether this combined approach improves timely delivery of preventive services and growth monitoring. The work focuses on communities where CHWs and phone access can reach families.
Who could benefit from this research
Good fit: Caregivers of infants from birth up to one year old who live in the study's targeted communities and can be contacted by mobile phone are ideal candidates.
Not a fit: Infants who live outside the program area, families without reliable phone access, or those not reached by community health workers may not receive direct benefit.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this approach could increase on-time well-child visits and improve delivery of preventive care like immunizations and growth checks for infants.
How similar studies have performed: Previous local projects showed that mobile reminders, conditional incentives, and CHW support can improve uptake of preventive child health services, so this approach builds on established methods.
Where this research is happening
Columbia, United States
- University of South Carolina at Columbia — Columbia, United States (Active)
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Ostermann, Jan — University of South Carolina at Columbia
- Study coordinator: Ostermann, Jan
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page below.