Study of the Effect on Clinical Outcomes Using Secure Text Messaging

Study of the Effect on Clinical Outcomes Using Secure Text Messaging

In this study, the investigators will conduct a randomized, controlled trial to evaluate the impact of offering mobile secure text messaging on clinical outcomes.

Inpatient health care providers such as physicians and nurses spend up to one-third of their time communicating with other health care providers. Many of these communications have shifted mediums from handwritten notes and face-to-face conversations to phone calls and paging systems. More recently the rapid adoption of smartphones has led to the use of mobile-enabled technologies using smartphones such as text messaging and email. While these technologies may offer ease and fit better within the clinical workflow, they often send patient information through unsecure cellular or internet connections. Mobile secure text messaging may address these issues by encrypting data and allowing for asynchronous or synchronous communication between individual providers or groups of providers. In this study, the investigators will conduct a randomized, controlled trial to evaluate the impact of offering mobile secure text messaging on clinical outcomes.

Inclusion Criteria:

• Admission to one of the hospital floors or services in the study at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania

Exclusion Criteria:

• Discharges against medical advice
• Discharges to hospice