What if your doctor or dentist sent you a text message on your mobile phone to remind you of your appointment? Sent you test results? What if the health department sent you a message warning of STDs and reminding you to wear a condom? Sound far fetched? It's happening now.
A Wall Street Journal article, don't 4get ur pills: Text Messaging for Health, discusses the new practice of text messaging health information to patients via cellphones. It is argued that it is a better means to deliver information to patients than leaving messages on their voice mail and unlike email, doesn't need an email device.
"In England, women have received text reminders to take their birth-control
pills. In Australia, texting helped AIDS patients adhere to complicated drug
regimens."
According to the WSJ article, most programs that deliver text messages don't cost anything other than what phone plans are already charging for texting.
The Web site, Technology, Health and Development has pulled together some really interesting research on many of the available phone messaging programs now available world-wide.
As a mental health clinician, I have mixed feelings about such readily accessible health information for patients. On the one hand, I applaud the ease and efficiency of it. But I have serious reservations about patient privacy.
What do you think? Does the benefit outweigh privacy concerns? Let me know.
Nancy
I think it is frightening to have private information so accessible.
ReplyDeleteYikes!
Hi Maudy:
ReplyDeleteThanks for taking the time to comment.
I agree!
Nancy