The Wyoming Department of Health has rolled out a new app, which was developed by San Francisco-based Wildflower Health. Called “Family Health,” the tool seeks to help patients track the health of each member of his or her family.
The app includes a variety of features, including profiles for each family member; vaccination, height and weight trackers for children; tools for pregnant mothers; and connections to health resources within the state, like the Wyoming Quit Tobacco Program.
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“I sort of see this as the owner’s manual,” Dr. James Bush, Wyoming Medicaid medical director with the WDH, said in a phone interview. “It doesn’t provide any healthcare, but it helps [patients] locate and know how to utilize healthcare resources.”
Family Health, he said, can help individuals throughout their whole lives, from conception through pregnancy and birth through death.
Wildflower Health, which raised $5 million in 2015, is perhaps best known for its work in the prenatal space. CEO Leah Sparks founded the startup about five years ago when she was pregnant with her first child.
“As we figured out how to go to market, we started with a very narrow focus on pregnancy,” she said in a phone interview.
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Thus, the company’s original focus was on expectant mothers, and its Due Date Plus app helps them connect with providers and stay on track with appointments.
The Wyoming Department of Health previously worked with Wildflower Health on a study related to the Due Date Plus app. WDH gave Medicaid mothers in the state access to the app, which reminded them about prenatal checks, among other things. The results of the study showed women using the tool had fewer low birth weight deliveries than those who didn’t use the app.
Now, with the Family Health app, Wyoming residents can be continuously engaged beyond pregnancy.
Wyoming isn’t the only state utilizing Wildflower’s app. Sparks said there are a few hospitals, multiple outpatient providers and one employer and its health plan using Family Health.
Looking ahead, Sparks noted that her company wants to find more ways to reach patients directly and continue having long-term relationships with consumers. Though the San Francisco startup initially focused on one episode of care — pregnancy — it plans to add tools for additional episodes of care in the year ahead.
And as for Wildflower Health’s name, Sparks said there were two factors that contributed. For one, the company’s original focus was on life and newness, which wildflowers represent. Additionally, Sparks said she’s always loved wildflowers and how their ability to grow anywhere represents innovation.
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