Some pediatric practices have begun issuing reminders, sent via text message, to new parents, to encourage adherence for pediatric appointments, according to the Wall Street Journal.
These text messages ensure the target demographic — children 3 years old or below — are up-to-date with their pediatric care; the text messages may include reminders about checkups or information about age-specific healthcare. The goal is to keep young children on track for all the immunizations, screenings and preventative treatments that are recommended.
Physicians from Bloomington, Minn.-based Park Nicollet Clinics spoke with the Wall Street Journal about how the text message reminders have impacted their practice. Their physicians use CareWire, a text messaging service company focused on provider-to-patient communication. Almost 800 Park Nicollet Clinics patients have received text message reminders through this service, 70 percent of whom successfully scheduled a well-child checkup.