Usability and Acceptability of a Text Message-Based Developmental Screening Tool for Young Children: Pilot Study

Area of Science:

• Pediatrics
• Public Health
• Health Informatics

Background:

• Developmental screening rates are low, especially in low-income households.
• Text4baby developed an interactive text message tool for developmental screening.
• This tool aims to increase screening accessibility for parents.

Purpose of the Study:

• To assess the usability and acceptability of a text message-based developmental screening tool.
• To evaluate the tool's effectiveness among low-income mothers and their infants.
• To identify potential for scalable, text-based developmental screening solutions.

Main Methods:

• Recruited low-income mothers of 8-10 month olds from WIC clinics.
• Participants responded to six developmental screening questions via text message.
• Follow-up phone surveys and focus groups assessed user experience and satisfaction.

Main Results:

• 81 mothers enrolled; 80% completed follow-up surveys.
• All participants initiated and completed the text-based screening.
• 98% would recommend the tool; all rated the experience as good or very good.

Conclusions:

• A mobile text version of a developmental screening tool is usable and acceptable for low-income mothers.
• The tool effectively identified infants who may be behind in development.
• Results support further research into scalable, text-based developmental screening tools.