Thomas Geppert, MD, a rheumatologist at Rheumatology Associates in Dallas, says he uses a system in which his patients can reach him by e-mail, which he says is more efficient than the telephone.
He says he can imagine using text messaging for weekly or monthly reminders, but not for daily medications.
“One of the problems we have is the privacy laws,” he says. “Having to put a password on the system makes it harder for patients to use it, and many of them choose not to use it. It seems like a small thing, but the extra steps involved make it cumbersome for older patients and they are easily scared off.”
Thomas Collins is a freelance medical writer based in Florida.
References
- Hughes LD, Done J, Young A. Not 2 old 2 TXT: There is potential to use email and SMS text message healthcare reminders for rheumatology patients up to 65 years old. Health Informatics J. 2011;17:266-276.
- Car J, Gurol-Urganci I, de Jongh T, Vodopivec-Jamsek V, Atun R. Mobile phone messaging reminders for attendance at healthcare appointments. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2012 Jul 11;7:CD007458.
- Ríos-Bedoya CF, Hay C. Feasibility of using text messaging for unhealthy behaviors screening in a clinical setting: A case study on adolescent hazardous alcohol use. J Am Med Inform Assoc. 2012 Jul 3. [Epub ahead of print]