MOBILE, Ala. — The Mobile County Health Department (MCHD) and Family Health (its primary care division) announced in 2022 the release of a smartphone app called “My MCHD Health Check.” This app has served as a new way for the health department to connect with Mobile County residents and visitors, providing information quickly and efficiently to anyone with a smartphone.

The public has certainly taken notice. The app has been downloaded more than 3,600 times (2,559 for iPhones and 1,112 for Android phones). The next goal is set for 4,500 by the end of 2024.

The effort has not gone unnoticed. The Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) featured the software on its Health Center Stories webpage. The section is titled “Free App May Help Lower Blood Pressure in Alabama Patients.”

The MCHD app was developed by ThePublicHealthApp.com, a division of OCV. The app offers quick access to items of public interest and is easy to use.

“What began as a way to assist patients with health lifestyle tools for lowering high blood pressure and high blood cholesterol through a grant from ADPH five years ago has turned into an agency-wide mobile application that includes restaurant ratings, a Health Center locator map, Overdose Prevention, a connection to download the WIC state app, and a primary care tool,” said Melissa Creighton, Family Health’s grant manager who has played a key role in the project. “The app still contains those tools for healthy lifestyle such as the ‘Talk to a Nutritionist’ button to be automatically connected to an in-house licensed registered nutritionist who can call the patient to set up an in person or virtual appointment.

“Also, the app includes a tool called ‘Blood Pressure Calculator’ to keep and retain blood pressure readings. It gives a handy alert to the user based on the readings.”

In May, a new tool was added to track local heat risks. The tool is a health-based heat forecast developed by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s National Weather Service and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

The Mobile County Health Department app is available for download for free in the App Store and Google Play. Search “My MCHD Health Check” or click the following link to download the app — https://apps.myocv.com/share/a65536603. The app can be used in both English and Spanish.