Army pilots text messaging to manage health of wounded vets

The U.S. Army is piloting a telehealth program to monitor seriously wounded veterans via cell phones in an effort to increase contact with case managers and perhaps ease their recovery. The program, called Mobile Care (mCare), is an initiative of the Army's Telemedicine and Advanced Technology Research Center (TATRC). It began over the summer with 100 wounded warriors--many with traumatic brain injuries--but is ramping up over the next year to have the capacity to serve 10,000 soldiers returning from overseas combat, Government Technology reports.

mCare uses off-the-shelf technology from AllOne Mobile, a division of software vendor AllOne Health Group based out of Wilkes-Barre, Pa., to facilitate secure, two-way communication between patients, physicians and caregivers. All participants need is a phone with text messaging, and the program provides one to any veterans without an appropriate phone. AllOne also will reimburse soldiers who need to add a data package to their existing phone plan.

The mCare program includes a web portal for patients to report sleeping patterns and mood swings to their case managers. They also can sign up to receive health tips and appointment reminders via text message.

To learn more about this Army program:
- check out this Government Technology story [1]