Text messaging has become easy to scale, but there are downsides to texting patients.
These are some of the disadvantages of texting
1. Incorporation.
First, when patients share their cell phone number, they must consent to receive text messages from the organization. And second, the first text message sent must always be an “acceptance” message that the patient must respond to in order to start the messaging campaign. However, NOT everyone is up for this.
2. Regulatory considerations.
Texting must comply with the law, which means that we cannot send anything that could reveal personal health information. Including the patient’s condition, in case other people have access to your phone / messages.
3. Just reminders.
Text messages are usually prompts asking the patient to remember something or to take a certain action. In several cases, the barrier to taking action is the lack of information / knowledge / understanding of the patient. Which makes it difficult to predict which individuals will fall into this category. The limited number of characters (140) can also make the text message useless.
4. Message of fatigue.
It is well documented that, over time, people will pay less and less attention to similar messages over time.
5. Other considerations include the cost that a person may incur per message received. As well as frequently changing phone numbers, which is common in certain patient demographics.
Mobile apps overcome most of these problems
Once the application is downloaded by the patient, it is much easier to manage communication through notifications and it is also easier to secure the transmission of personal medical information.
Engagement is multifactorial in the application environment: we can remember, but also educate and interact with the patient. Finally, the applications can be downloaded for free.
Of course, apps are not a panacea. Patients sometimes have difficulties with the discharge process itself. Just as messages can cost users, the use of applications can affect data plan expenses.
Smartphone ownership estimates vary, with most urban markets at around 80 percent. That leaves 20 percent of any given sample unable to use an application.
So what is the best course of action?
Based on experience and research with text messaging and mobile apps. Texting is recommended for simple and one-time interventions, such as medical appointments, annual exams, medication refills, and flu shots.
Text reminders can also be good for short-term campaigns for patients who take medication infrequently. De-addiction or rehabilitation programs, or for patients who do not own a smartphone.
However, for more complex treatment regimens or challenging patient populations. The effectiveness of mobile applications is recommended when the sustained and long-term participation of the patient is required.
Related Notes:
Vitamin D emerges as a possible treatment for COVID-19
Mu variant of COVID-19 breaks through in Mexico and attacks the most …
Why COVID-19 Could Become Flu-Like