Impact
Faster FDA submissions
Thanks to an agile process within the boundary of a regulated medical device development process.
Robust performance
Better customer experience
Hospitals onboard faster, and new features match clinical needs.
Scalable development
A simplified code allows new developers to contribute quickly.
About
Every organization with impact starts by asking: Why are we here? For Bloomlife, the answer is unambiguous: to save mothers and babies.
Over 700 women die each day from preventable causes related to pregnancy. Every two minutes, a life is lost. Even in advanced economies like the US, preventable deaths occur far too often. Later pregnancies, chronic illnesses like diabetes, and the rise of so-called maternity care deserts (areas without access to OB-GYN clinics), all contribute to an unacceptable reality.
Bloomlife was founded in California and Belgium in 2014 to change this reality. Its mission is to use technology to redefine prenatal care and improve outcomes everywhere. With Bloomlife Connects, hospitals can remotely monitor high-risk pregnancies, giving doctors real-time oversight while saving staff time.
“We know that early detection and timely interventions can significantly improve birth outcomes”, says co-founder Julien Penders. “That’s what drives us”. Bloomlife’s purpose is clear: to set a new standard of maternal care that is accessible, equitable, and effective. And to bring care where it is needed most.
“In our business, it’s an ongoing race against the clock. Team Rockstars is the first I call to accelerate our software development. They understand our culture and respond fast with vetted professionals.”
BALANCING URGENCY AND DISCIPLINE
Bloomlife Connects is far more than a sensor and an app. It is a complete ecosystem: connected devices, integration with Electronic Patient Records, AI-driven insights, secure cloud infrastructure, web interfaces for hospitals and customer support, and clinical services that trigger interventions when needed.
Scaling such a system is never straightforward. Bloomlife faces three major challenges:
- Growth vs. Stability: Reaching more mums faster means onboarding more hospitals. Speed and new features, with uncompromised reliability.
- Agility vs. Regulation: Software is built in sprints, through rapid iteration. Medical devices follow a waterfall process, with fixed specs, rigorous testing, and FDA approval cycles that take months. Bloomlife must bridge these worlds.
- Time vs. Resources: As a startup, managing the burn rate is critical. Every delay risks not just funding, but lives.
These competing demands could pull any team apart. Bloomlife, instead, reframes the problem: how to live both principles at once: urgency and discipline, agility and compliance. Fast enough to matter. Careful enough to be trusted.
“In our business, time is of the essence,” says Julien. “It’s an ongoing race against the clock.”
AGILITY WITH BOUNDARIES
The easy answer “just hire more people” doesn’t work for startups. Talent is scarce, resources are finite, and cultural fit is essential in a fully remote organization. Bloomlife needs partners who bring expertise, adaptability, and shared values.
That’s where Team Rockstars IT comes in. For over five years, Rockstars have been embedded in Bloomlife’s development team, adding flexible capacity and aligning seamlessly in a remote setup.
Emiel Bon, a key Rockstar contributor, describes the approach:
“We focus on simplicity: cutting complexity, maximizing reuse, and balancing pragmatism with user experience. Every choice is weighed carefully and we make detailed refinements.”
This philosophy is reshaping Bloomlife’s technology landscape organically. C++, Python, Swift, and Ruby are phased out. The team consolidates around a streamlined stack: Kotlin, Android, React, JavaScript/TypeScript, HTML/CSS, a touch of Node.js, AWS, and Terraform.
By reducing noise in the backend, Bloomlife built a foundation that is both robust and adaptable. The simplified code makes it easier to respond to changing requirements and deliver consistent results. “Emiel’s preference for simplicity is fully aligned with the vision of our Head of Engineering,” notes Julien.
The payoff is visible even in practical details. Emiel explains how more efficient development of patient and support web applications was possible. “That’s because of the code reviews, quality checks, and thoughtful technology choices we made.”
SPEED, CONFIDENCE, SCALABILITY
Bloomlife has achieved what many consider impossible: a development approach that is agile enough to iterate quickly yet structured enough to satisfy FDA scrutiny.
“It’s about balance,” Julien explains. “It’s key that our people listen to each other’s perspectives. Team Rockstars brings an agile, open-minded approach to software development. Yet they also see the specific regulatory requirements shared by our medical device experts. This combination produces solutions that work for everyone.”
The results speak for themselves:
- Faster FDA submissions: Thanks to an agile process within the boundary of a regulated medical device development process.
- Robust performance: A backend with reduced complexity that can handle rapid growth, and is virtually bug-free, still serving a complex domain.
- Better customer experience: Hospitals onboard faster, and new features match clinical needs.
- Scalable development: A simplified code allows new developers to contribute quickly.
The benefits extend beyond software explains Emiel. “Agile methods surface risks early, giving management time to adapt. Deadlines are met. Investors are reassured.” And in the end, more patients gain access to safer, more timely care.
Collaboration
“It’s hard to find talented developers, especially in software,” says Julien. “For this, Team Rockstars is the first I call. They respond fast with vetted professionals, and Rockstars are deeply in touch with the latest technology.”
But for Bloomlife, collaboration isn’t only about technical expertise. It’s about shared values. Trust. Curiosity. A bias for action. Mutual support. These aren’t slogans. They are habits. And in a fully remote environment, they are what keep teams cohesive rather than fragmented. With this alignment, Bloomlife can scale resources “like a flexible skin,” adapting quickly to changing demands without losing momentum.
About Emiel, Julien says: “He’s an amazing cultural fit. He really matches everything we look for in a developer, on a technical, personal and cultural level. That’s why he’s been with us for over 5 years”.
The lesson is simple but powerful: when teams share values and stay focused on the mission, urgency and discipline stop being opposites. Instead, they create synergy. Bloomlife now delivers faster while staying compliant, a rare achievement in healthcare technology.
“Emiel is an amazing cultural fit. He really matches everything we look for in a developer, on a technical, personal and cultural level. That’s why he’s been with for over 5 years.”
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