Maternal and Child Health Handbook App 'Boshimo' Launches in Kihoku Town, Mie Prefecture!

Maternal and Child Health Handbook App 'Boshimo' Launches in Kihoku Town, Mie Prefecture! ~Making the town's seamless child-rearing support even smoother with an app~

Boshimo Inc.'s Maternal and Child Health Handbook app, 'Boshimo,' has been introduced in Kihoku Town, Kitamuro District, Mie Prefecture, and has been available as the 'Kihoku Maternal and Child Health Handbook App' since April 1st (Wednesday).

Kihoku Town, under the basic philosophy of "a town where children can be born safely and grow up healthy," is working to create an environment where families can experience the joy of parenting by responding to the diverse needs of households raising children.

This time, 'Boshimo,' an app already implemented in over 830 municipalities that allows for the digital recording of paper Maternal and Child Health Handbook data, has been adopted. Its operation begins in line with the Children and Families Agency's policy to promote the use of electronic Maternal and Child Health Handbooks and advance Maternal and Child Health DX *1.

'Boshimo' is an app that easily supports services such as managing vaccination schedules, tracking health check-up results, and distributing local information on smartphones, tablets, and PCs. Since the data is stored in the cloud, it serves as a backup in case the Maternal and Child Health Handbook is lost due to a disaster. It also supports continued use when moving to other municipalities or changing devices, ensuring users can use it with peace of mind.

### ◆ 'Boshimo' launches in Kihoku Town, Mie, providing a secure child-rearing environment with long-term support!

Kihoku Town has established the "Kihoku Town Comprehensive Support Center for Child-Rearing Generations" to provide seamless support from pregnancy through the child-rearing period. The center addresses anxieties and difficulties related to pregnancy, childbirth, and parenting, responding to consultations not only from the individuals themselves but also from their families, and collaborates with related organizations to promote an environment where children can be raised with peace of mind.

Furthermore, the town has established a support system for raising children without undue burden, such as implementing temporary childcare services that can be used when parents are unable to care for their children due to work, illness, or other reasons.

This time, 'Boshimo' was adopted as a new tool for disseminating child-rearing information to make the town's initiatives even more convenient for families.

### ◆ Thoroughly supporting pregnancy, childbirth, and parenting with a community-focused child-rearing app!

The 'Kihoku Maternal and Child Health Handbook App,' adopted by Kihoku Town, is a service compatible with smartphones, tablets, and PCs. It is packed with convenient features to help busy mothers and fathers, such as recording and managing health data for expectant mothers and children, managing vaccination schedules, providing advice on childbirth and parenting, a function for sharing with family members like grandparents living far away, and delivering information from the town.

The "Milestone Anniversary" feature, which can be used as a parenting diary, was created based on templates from the Children and Families Agency's Maternal and Child Health Handbook. It not only allows for recording developmental stages and parenting milestones, including the "Parent's Records" section of the handbook, with photos and messages, but also serves as a guide for the child's growth and development.

Additionally, even during times of social environmental changes due to infectious diseases, the app supports the creation of a safe environment for childbirth and parenting. It allows for the instant delivery of important information, such as warnings from the municipality and advice from public health nurses, to those who need it via text or video.

### < Main Features of the 'Kihoku Maternal and Child Health Handbook App' >

**【Information on various systems and services provided by the municipality】**

* Guidance on various subsidy systems and application procedures tailored to the stage of pregnancy and parenting, such as child medical expense subsidies and child allowances. * Various announcements distributed by the municipality.

**【Recording and Management】**

* Record of physical condition and weight during pregnancy (with graph visualization). * Record of fetal and child growth (with graph visualization). * Check for obesity or thinness using height-weight curves (with graph visualization). * Vaccinations: Automatic display of standard vaccination dates, management of planned and completed vaccinations, and alerts to prevent missed shots. * Health check-up information: Recording of health check-up data for expectant mothers and children.

**【Information and Advice】**

* Basic information on childbirth and parenting. * Knowledge and advice tailored to the week of pregnancy or the child's age in months. * Videos on topics like bathing a newborn and making baby food. * Information on nearby facilities (hospitals, kindergartens/nursery schools, parks, child-rearing facilities, etc.).

**【Parenting Diary: Milestone Anniversary】**

* Record your child's growth with photos. * Upload photos for milestones using a "First Milestone Template" with the date and a message (approx. 150 recordable items like First... fetal movement / kick / rolling over / sitting up / crawling / standing alone / walking alone).

**【Data Sharing】**

* Child's growth records and health data can be viewed on family members' smartphones and can also be posted to social media.

Our company's vision is to reduce the friction coefficient related to pregnancy and child-rearing to zero. Towards this goal, we are promoting the further expansion and collaboration of support areas through 'Child-rearing DX®' *2 (prenatal check-ups, vaccinations, infant health check-ups, etc.), developing a one-stop system for all applications and procedures related to child-rearing, and promoting the linkage of maternal and child health information with related institutions (medical, childcare/education, specialized agencies, etc.). Through this, we aim to co-create a society of "safe and simple" child-rearing with local communities by reducing the "anxiety and burden" on parents.

**Service Name:** Kihoku Maternal and Child Health Handbook App **Monthly Fee (incl. tax):** Free **Access Methods:**

* App: Search for 'Boshimo' on the App Store or Google Play (Supported OS: Android 8.0 or later, iOS 15.0 or later) * Web Browser: Access https://www.mchh.jp

*Even if you do not reside in a target municipality, you can still use the app, but please check the official website for information specific to your municipality. *Some features may differ depending on your municipality of residence.

*1: From the Children and Families Agency website, "Reference Materials for the 2025 Action Plan for Promoting Child Policy DX" *2: For details on the 'Child-rearing DX®' service, click here: https://www.mchh.jp/boshimo-kosodatedx

*'Child-rearing DX' is a registered trademark of Boshimo Inc. *Google Play and Android are trademarks or registered trademarks of Google LLC. *App Store is a service mark of Apple Inc. *iOS is the OS name of Apple Inc. iOS is a trademark or registered trademark of Cisco Systems, Inc. or its affiliates in the U.S. and other countries and is used under license.