SMS for the Healthcare Industry

With so many individuals seeking care at your facility, finding a way to communicate with the necessary people is essential. They may have an upcoming appointment, procedure or medication pickup—and you need a way to remind them of these important dates and times. When you use Red Oxygen’s business short message service (SMS) solutions, you can easily remind patients of these critical appointments or medication refills. You can also use SMS for communication with your staff about work-related matters.

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Ways to Use SMS in Healthcare

Whether you are looking to send reminders to your patients or messages to staff members, SMS for healthcare is a valuable tool. There are several ways you can use SMS to improve communication throughout your healthcare facility, including:

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John, it is time for your annual wellness check. Give us a call or schedule an appoint online at DrJohnMartin.com/appointments

Annual Appointment Reminders

Annual Appointment Reminders

You want to ensure your patients arrange health checkups or dental appointments and remember to go. Since many individuals tend to forget about these recurring appointments, you can use SMS to remind them to schedule and attend these visits.

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[ABC Medical Group] Nancy, we are looking forward to seeing you tomorrow for your 8 a.m. appointment with Mr. Martin.

Notifications About Upcoming Appointments

Notifications About Upcoming Appointments

It can be challenging for patients to remember the date and time of an appointment they made weeks or months in advance. When you send them a message notifying them of the date and time of their visit, they are more likely to attend. You can even give them the option to cancel or reschedule via text.

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We are looking for someone to fill an open shift on Saturday from 7 a.m. - 3 p.m. Please reply back if you are interested. Thanks!

Changes in Shifts and Policies Messages

Changes in Shifts and Policies Messages

If you need to notify your staff of an open shift or provide other critical information, such as policy changes or illness outbreaks, you can use SMS. Send messages quickly with this service to get faster response times and help your staff stay updated.

calendar
Annual Appointment Reminders

John, it is time for your annual wellness check. Give us a call or schedule an appoint online at DrJohnMartin.com/appointments

You want to ensure your patients arrange health checkups or dental appointments and remember to go. Since many individuals tend to forget about these recurring appointments, you can use SMS to remind them to schedule and attend these visits.

bell
Notifications About Upcoming Appointments

[ABC Medical Group] Nancy, we are looking forward to seeing you tomorrow for your 8 a.m. appointment with Mr. Martin.

It can be challenging for patients to remember the date and time of an appointment they made weeks or months in advance. When you send them a message notifying them of the date and time of their visit, they are more likely to attend. You can even give them the option to cancel or reschedule via text.

question
Changes in Shifts and Policies Messages

We are looking for someone to fill an open shift on Saturday from 7 a.m. - 3 p.m. Please reply back if you are interested. Thanks!

If you need to notify your staff of an open shift or provide other critical information, such as policy changes or illness outbreaks, you can use SMS. Send messages quickly with this service to get faster response times and help your staff stay updated.

Get Business SMS Healthcare Solutions From Red Oxygen

Partnering with Red Oxygen for SMS helps you increase communication between patients and staff, which allows you to work more effectively. We offer numerous solutions for any goal in the healthcare industry with our advanced API technology.

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Benefits of Using

Connection Icon SMS for Healthcare Reminders

Incorporating SMS solutions from Red Oxygen into your business can help you increase productivity and efficiency. Our system allows you to send immediate or scheduled text messages directly from your computer. It will work with your existing infrastructure, too, such as Gmail, Outlook, spreadsheets or your patient relationship management (PRM) software.

We make sending messages even easier with templates, distribution lists and bulk SMS merge fields. Send reminders, two-factor authentication codes or updates with Red Oxygen today.

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HEALTHCARE PROFESSIONALS

See Who Sends SMS with Red Oxygen

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Get in Touch With Patients and Staff Efficiently

When you need to contact your fellow employees and patients, choose Red Oxygen’s bulk and individual SMS messaging. You can send these messages directly from your computer without needing a developer on staff. With Red Oxygen, you can send SMS through a web browser or your email account. We can provide you with a dedicated phone number with your area code, call forwarding and message threading. Reach your patients and staff quickly through personalized, easy-to-manage texts.

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Send SMS from Outlook

Works w/ Microsoft Outlook 2003-19 & the Microsoft 365 Outlook app

Office SMS
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Send SMS Using Microsoft SMS

Use this add-on to send SMS through Outlook on a browser

Office365 SMS
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Send SMS From Gmail

Send SMS directly from your Gmail interface on a computer or Android phone

Gmail SMS
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Send Bulk SMS

Personalize, create templates and send them all at once

Bulk SMS
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Connect with our API to send SMS

Configure our API with your existing software or CRM

SMS Gateway API
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Send SMS through a browser

Log in from any device through any browser. No installation required.

Web SMS
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Send SMS from Microsoft 365

Use this add-on to send SMS through Outlook on a browser

OfficeSMS 365 (beta)
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Send SMS from Gmail

Text directly from your Gmail interface

Gmail SMS
  • Send SMS Through Email. Easy Peasy.

    Office SMS logo

    Send SMS from Outlook

    Works w/ Microsoft Outlook 2003-19 & the Microsoft 365 Outlook app

    Office SMS
    OfficeSMS 365 logo

    Send SMS Using Microsoft SMS

    Use this add-on to send SMS through Outlook on a browser

    Office365 SMS
    Gmail SMS logo

    Send SMS From Gmail

    Send SMS directly from your Gmail interface on a computer or Android phone

    Gmail SMS
  • Sending Texts In Bulk?

    Bulk SMS logo

    Send Bulk SMS

    Personalize, create templates and send them all at once

    Bulk SMS
    API SMS logo

    Connect with our API to send SMS

    Configure our API with your existing software or CRM

    SMS Gateway API
  • Never Want to Leave Your Browser?

    Web SMS logo

    Send SMS through a browser

    Log in from any device through any browser. No installation required.

    Web SMS
    OfficeSMS 365 logo

    Send SMS from Microsoft 365

    Use this add-on to send SMS through Outlook on a browser

    OfficeSMS 365 (beta)
    Gmail SMS logo

    Send SMS from Gmail

    Text directly from your Gmail interface

    Gmail SMS

Related Blog Posts

The Advantages of Red Oxygen’s SMS Marketing in Healthcare

How SMS Can Increase Your Efficiency
Why SMS Is Great for Customer Support
A2P Messaging Benefits
How SMS can improve at home healthcare
Your Guide to HIPAA-Compliant Texting and SMS
Using SMS for 2FA Verification
SMS Marketing Tips
Women holding a cellphone
Woman using a laptop with a stethoscope sitting next to her.
Appointment Reminder SMS

Hi [NAME]! This is a reminder that your [SERVICE] is coming up on [DATE] at [TIME]. Reply YES to confirm. If you need to reschedule, reply with CANCEL.

Health Portal 2FA SMS

Hi [NAME]! Thanks for signing up for your health portal! To finish setting up, enter this code on your web browser: [XXXXX]. Keep the code confidential. Need help completing the sign-up process? Click here [URL]

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SMS Templates for Healthcare

Enhance engagement and save time by customizing messages for your patients with ready-to-use SMS templates.

SMS Templates

Need to see it to believe it?

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Healthcare SMS FAQ

SMS can streamline your practice's communications with patients and staff. Check out the answers to some frequently asked questions to learn more about how healthcare SMS works and how to get the most from it.

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How often should you send patient text messages?

You may feel like Goldilocks when trying to figure out the right number of text messages to send patients. You don’t want to flood them with messages, causing them to unsubscribe. You also don’t want to send too few messages, which can cause them to forget appointments or not get the information they need when it’s needed. 

While there’s no magical formula for the right number of messages to send, a good rule of thumb to follow is to send an appointment reminder about one week in advance and an additional reminder the day before the appointment.

How can you remain HIPAA compliant in SMS?

The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) protects patients’ privacy. The best way for you to remain HIPAA compliant when using text messages to communicate with patients is to avoid sending any health information to them via text. You can send messages telling them that their results are ready or that they are due for a refill, but don’t reveal the results or list the full name of the medication in the message, instead send them the link to their secure patient portal to get those details.

It’s also essential to get patient consent and opt-in before you start communicating with them over text.

How can you reduce no-show appointments?

No-show appointments cost medical practices time and money. They can also limit access to healthcare, as an appointment slot that another patient could have benefited from ends up going unused. SMS can help reduce no-shows by reminding patients of their upcoming appointments and giving them the option of canceling or changing the time or date in advance.

How can you integrate Red Oxygen with your healthcare CRM?

We’ve made it easy to integrate Red Oxygen with your existing platforms or CRM. Our gateway application programming interface (API) allows you to integrate our solution with your current CRM without using additional hardware.

Why use SMS communication for healthcare?

SMS communication offers multiple benefits to the healthcare industry. It can help reduce missed appointments or no-shows, and it streamlines patient communication, making it easier for your current patients to reach out with concerns or questions. It can also simplify the administrative side of healthcare by making it easier to schedule doctors and employees when needed.