Text reminders keep diabetics on track with medication

New research published in Clinical Therapeutics shows that text message reminders can significantly improve diabetic patients' adherence to their medication.

In the study of 580 people, those who received text message reminders better adhered to their oral medication regimen (85 percent) than those who did not (77 percent). Among those who took a chronic oral antidiabetes medication, the percentages were even higher--91 percent vs. 82 percent.

Indeed, texting programs are growing in popularity. A federal/state/local partnership called txt4health is under way in the Beacon communities of New Orleans, Cincinnati and Detroit with the goal of reducing residents' risks of Type 2 diabetes.

Meanwhile, pilot programs via Chartered Health Plan in Washington, D.C., according to InformationWeek, and at Sacramento Family Medical in California, according to the Sacramento Business Journal, are among those offering text reminders to diabetes patients.

Additionally, for a recent study published in the Journal of the American Medical Informatics Association, researchers reviewed previous studies, finding nine that confirmed the benefits of text reminders and eight showed apparent differences with groups that were not reminded. That review, however, noted that the benefits can be short-lived.

To learn more:
- here's the Clinical Therapeutics abstract
- check out the txt4health program
- read the JAMIA abstract
- read InformationWeek's take on the Chartered Health Plan program
- check out this Sacramento Business Journal article