NEWSROOM
HARMAN Partners with REACH to Expand Remote Care Platform for Maternal Health and Wellness
STAMFORD, CT – September 29, 2021 – HARMAN, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd., focused on connected technologies and solutions for automotive, consumer and enterprise markets, today announced a collaboration with REACH, a 501c3 global social impact organization whose mission is to improve the overall health care experience for both patients and providers. One primary area of focus for Reach is the prevention of maternal mortality and morbidity. Reach’s maternal health and wellness platform, called Happy Mama, is the first and only fully comprehensive biopsychosocial wellness platform for maternity care.
Happy Mama is powered by the HARMAN Remote Care Platform, a strategic initiative by HARMAN in the digital healthcare space. HARMAN RCP is a technology solution to enable remote patient monitoring by providing the ability to collect patient health and vital information using advanced biometric devices, patient health assessment surveys (ePRO) and patient communication, education and engagement capabilities. It also offers a digital care pathway framework and visualization capabilities to clinicians so they can orchestrate remote patient care in a flexible and efficient manner.
Along with a compendium of resources, tools, and services for pregnancy, labor and delivery, and postpartum, Happy Mama supports women throughout the tender moments of motherhood.
According to the World Health Organization, every day approximately 800 women globally die as a result of complications during pregnancy (WHO 2019). The mortality rate in the United States is the highest amongst all western countries and annually an estimated 70,000 morbidities occur as a result of complications during pregnancy (Commonwealth Fund 2020, CDC 2020). Women of color, over the age of 35, resource-poor or living in resource-constrained or rural settings are at the highest risk.
However, nearly 75% of maternal death and injury is preventable (WHO 2019). Data from the World Health Organization has shown that delays in seeking care, lack of transportation, delays in diagnosing, misdiagnosis and delays in treatment are the top preventable measures that need addressing (2019). Happy Mama is a comprehensive therapeutic specific solution that encourages clinical decision support and empowers and supports the perinatal period, pre-pregnancy through one year postpartum, needs of women. The solution fosters improved communication and collaboration between providers and pregnant women, as well as better self-care and access to community and social services.
“Harman is committed to partnering with organizations like Reach and expanding the application and adoption of remote monitoring for causes that truly benefit from the technology. Maternal Health is one of those areas. By powering Reach’s solutions, we are pleased to contribute to the capabilities and portfolio of an organization that is diligently working to address digital health inequity. Reach’s Happy Mama solution is expected to transform the delivery of virtual maternal care, helping keep mothers and their unborn children safe, " said David Owens, SVP and General Manager, Digital Transformation Solutions, Connected Services, HARMAN.
“Expectant and new mothers and their maternal health care providers need a comprehensive, secure, easy to use platform that is grounded in science,” said Fran Ayalasomayajula, President at REACH. “We are elated to be collaborating with HARMAN to deliver support for the needs of all birthing people. Coupling such robust technology with health education from the American Medical Association, Release the Pressure, and a variety of partners in physical, mental, emotional, spiritual, and social-economic wellbeing, Happy Mama is addressing the social determinants of maternal health, and building the confidence of both expectant moms and providers.”
REACH is also a member of the American Heart Association’s Innovators’ Network, a consortium that connects entrepreneurs, providers, researchers and payers with the goal of advancing the development of healthcare technology. The Happy Mama app will incorporate the American Heart Association’s science-based health management plans, called CarePlans, into the app.
HARMAN and REACH have signed a definitive agreement to jointly develop a maternity care package on top of HARMAN RCP branded as Happy Mama. The collaboration combines Reach’s thought leadership in the maternal care space and HARMAN’s innovative technology and healthcare expertise to build a solution that addresses the unique needs of a diverse group of patients and provider communities. The agreement also includes a go to market partnership to launch the Happy Mama solution across the globe in a phased manner.
“The national Release the Pressure (RTP) initiative is proud to support efforts aimed at improving the health and well-being of all mothers, especially those in disproportionately impacted populations,” said Stephanie Johnson, VP of Communications & Product Strategies, American Medical Association. “Our collaboration with Reach will provide expectant mothers with evidence-based heart health materials, expert advice and support needed to help ensure healthy pregnancies, healthy moms and healthy babies.”
“Maternal morbidity and mortality rates continue to rise in the U.S. and the challenges are numerous both during and after pregnancy. To realize change, maternal health needs the validation and adoption of innovative technology solutions that improve access to care, communication, care coordination, behavioral change and social support,” explained Christina J. Wurster, MBA, CAE, Chief Executive Officer, Society for Maternal-Fetal Medicine.
“Getting the right resources into the hands of expectant mothers, especially in rural areas is challenging. Happy Mama is the kind of innovation we want to see more of and can’t wait to offer this to Tennessee women,” stated Jacy Warrell, MPA, Executive Director, Rural Health Association of Tennessee.
HARMAN RCP is a comprehensive remote patient monitoring solution that enables care service providers to securely access patient health data by connecting a wide array of medical and non-medical devices. It is built on Intel powered platform for remote patient monitoring allowing healthcare providers to leverage data cohesively across multiple use cases like patient care services, chronic disease management, aging-with-independence needs and identifying insights for patient health programs. For more information on HARMAN’s Digital Transformation Solutions (DTS) business unit, visit
Happy Mama Disaster Relief Program Reach is a non-profit organization, and deeply concerned about women who may be displaced and vulnerable due to Hurricane Ida, the wildfires, and other national disasters. In response to this national disaster, Reach is offering the Happy Mama platform at no cost through December 31, 2021, for those expectant and new mothers and maternal care teams affected by Hurricane Ida in Louisiana, New Jersey, and New York, the wildfires in Nevada and California, and other FEMA qualifying disaster areas. The platform is a great way for women to stay in communication with their providers as well as have access to much needed maternal care, community resources, social services, and educational materials.
About HARMAN
HARMAN (harman.com) designs and engineers connected products and solutions for automakers, consumers, and enterprises worldwide, including connected car systems, audio and visual products, enterprise automation solutions; and services supporting the Internet of Things. With leading brands including AKG®, Harman Kardon®, Infinity®, JBL®, Lexicon®, Mark Levinson® and Revel®, HARMAN is admired by audiophiles, musicians and the entertainment venues where they perform around the world. More than 50 million automobiles on the road today are equipped with HARMAN audio and connected car systems. Our software services power billions of mobile devices and systems that are connected, integrated and secure across all platforms, from work and home to car and mobile. HARMAN has a workforce of approximately 30,000 people across the Americas, Europe, and Asia. In March 2017, HARMAN became a wholly owned subsidiary of Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. Learn more about HARMAN at https://services.harman.com
ABOUT REACH
Established in 2016, Reach, the makers of Happy Mama, is a 501(c)(3) global social impact organization. The organization’s mission is to improve the healthcare experience for both patients and care providers. Reach is focused on creating sustainable, large-scale improvements in the delivery of care and in the health journey of all people
Their vision is to foster strong, healthy, vibrant communities by addressing the needs of individuals and public health professionals. Together with other community and digital health minded leaders, they are reaching beyond the current state to innovate new approaches, improve the quality of care, and increase access to care. Reach is particularly determined to ensure that care is available and accessible when and where it is needed regardless of race, color, or ethnicity, geolocation, gender, religion, age, sexual orientation, or socio-economic status.
Reach actively researches, develops and deploys new methods, tools, and technology-enabled solutions to address areas of persistent challenge such as clinician burnout, health equity, clinical empathy, and maternal mortality. They publish findings and solutions publicly to move the industry forward. In addition, they produce a variety of reference-able material including webinars, podcasts, documentaries, whitepapers, and indexes and deliver new innovative solutions.
Learn more about REACH at http://reachtl.org
For more information, contact:
Jasleen K. Makker
Pallavi Kondapalli
