In 2016, after leaving her doctor’s office after devastating miscarriage, Simmone Taitt looked to the internet to find comfort and information after a cold and short interaction with her OBGYN. Simmone and countless other expectant mothers experience a disconnect between finding answers to their many questions and concerns and empathetic and knowledgeable listeners during pregnancy. It’s simple: women want open ears, not just quick answers. Simmone Taitt saw this disconnect and created Poppy Seed Health, a messaging system for pregnant and postpartum women to get answers to questions they may be embarrassed to ask, from trustworthy and empathetic care providers. The system provides women with 24/7 access to doulas, midwives and nurses to answer any questions or concerns they might have. Poppy Seed Health offers a personal and trustworthy healthcare environment for women at every step of the process.

While Poppy Seed Health sits at a steep price of $59 a month, the price point is proving to be more than worth it for expectant mothers.  Currently, the service uses WhatsApp for communication but a messaging app is currently being developed with additional features.

Simmone Taitt is disrupting the market of maternal healthcare in a big way. In an interview for the “Female Founder Series” by crunchbase, Taitt states, “Accessibility and affordability are core to our mission. We know that having the emotional and mental health support of maternal health advocates in collaboration with providers is essential for improved health outcomes for both the birthing person and baby. What we are disrupting is the one-size-fits-all maternal healthcare model.” Taitt’s differentiator, what sets her apart, is what she is disrupting. She is getting rid of a healthcare model that treats every pregnant woman the same with a model that fits the individualized needs of each woman.

Another impressive aspect of this company is that it launched in February of 2020, right before Covid impacted the US. This could not have happened at a better time for Poppy Seed Health. The business grew 140% just two months after Covid hit, due to the increase demand for telehealth and virtual healthcare.

Simmone Taitt recognized the difficulties of being a black, female entrepreneur and used them as a springboard for her business. She truly understood and identified with the problems that her stakeholders were experiencing, which enabled her to serve them in a truly effective manner. According the CDC, Black, American Indian, and Alaska Native women are 2 to 3 times more likely to die from pregnancy than white women, and Poppy Seed Health could have huge positive impact on that number as it provides women an outlet to seek help and identify early warning signs of complications.

CrunchBase interview: https://about.crunchbase.com/blog/a-trusted-and-safe-digital-space-how-simmone-taitt-is-disrupting-the-maternal-healthcare-model/

https://www.poppyseedhealth.com/

https://www.cdc.gov/media/releases/2019/p0905-racial-ethnic-disparities-pregnancy-deaths.html