When human resources (HR) departments have access to text messaging, they gain the most effective channel to deliver communications and education concerning open enrollment, onboarding new employees, health and wellness offerings, and numerous other initiatives. We're seeing clients take full advantage of their texting capabilities to share timely, critical information with a majority of their employees , all while driving engagement. Below are 10 actual examples* of how one hospital's HR department is using texting for the important, the day to day, the mundane, and the fun. 1. "Friendly reminder, Benefits Open Enrollment ends Friday. Click here for more info: https://bit.ly." 2. "The Culture of Safety Survey window is open thru the end of the month. Click here to complete your survey today: https://bit.ly" 3. "Happy Employee Appreciation Day! You are invited for a sweet treat today! Time: 3P - 6P Location: Valet Parking Lot. We appreciate all that you do!" 4. "Calling all RNs! If you know of an RN looking for a change, plz share with them this link to attend our RN Open House this Wednesday: https://indeedhi.re/" 5. "Good Morning! Today is the deadline for eligible team members to receive their booster! Clinic is open from 7:30A to 2P in 6th Floor Dining Room, no appt needed." 6. "Calling All Veterans! If you're a veteran, please click on this link so we may recognize you at this year's Veterans Day celebration: https://bit.ly/" 7. "Did you miss the in-person town hall sessions last week? Not to worry! Click here to view highlights discussed: https://bit.ly/" 8. "Looking to access your W2 electronically and print out a copy yourself? Click here to find out how: https://bit.ly/" 9. "Want to save $ on your medical premiums in 2022? Click here to schedule your onsite biometric screening: https://bit.ly/" 10. "Know an RN who demonstrates excellent care to our patients? Click here to nominate for one of our RN Excellence Awards: https://bit.ly/" Want to learn what two-way text messaging from Dialog Health can do for your HR department? Schedule a demo today ! *Messages have been edited for clarity and anonymity.

Open enrollment will soon begin for hospitals and their human resources (HR) departments across the country. For most employers, including hospitals and health systems, communication with employees represents an ongoing challenge. More traditional communication methods can be cumbersome, time-consuming, and expensive, and often achieve suboptimal engagement. An employee might open and read information sent to them in the mail. They might open and read an email sitting in their inbox. They might notice and read a new poster hanging up in the breakroom. When the communication is important, and especially when it's time-sensitive, that's a lot of mights and a lot to leave to chance. Since hospital human resources departments must ensure critical messages are reaching large groups of — if not all — employees, some of which may now be working remotely part or full time, they are increasingly adding and heavily leaning upon a different communication channel: text messaging. Texting is fast, convenient, and inexpensive. It's also the method of communication most likely to reach, be read, and engaged with by employees. Consider the following statistics about texting: Nearly all (97%!) Americans own a device that can send and receive text messages. 90% of text messages are read within three minutes of being sent. Responses to texts take an average of just 90 seconds. Text messages have an open rate of 97%. Text messaging is also embraced by people of all ages . With texting a universally accepted communication platform, it's become an invaluable asset for hospital human resources departments, not only for open enrollment but year-round communications. The following are four of the most significant reasons HR departments should add text messaging, specifically two-way texting, or explore how they can be relying upon texting even more. 1. Key human resources initiatives There are many HR initiatives that immediately benefit from adding two-way texting to the communication mix, including the following: Benefits enrollment . A series of automated texts that go out before open enrollment starts and throughout enrollment is a highly effective, yet simple way to increase engagement during this important period. Some texting platforms include helpful filtering functionality, such as the ability to perform outreach by employment status (e.g., full-time, part-time), preferred language, types of insurance held, and name of plan provider, all of which help with engagement and enrollment participation. Onboarding new employees . Hospital and health system human resources departments spend significant time overseeing the hiring of employees — hiring that, for most organizations, has increased over these past few years as turnover has increased. The ability to automate onboarding-related messages via two-way texting can streamline the process by providing relevant information to the employee and steering them to additional resources, such as employee portals and time-sensitive documentation. HR departments can also text links to an onboarding checklist and educational materials, reminders about training sessions, information about required paperwork, and surveys about comfort with and questions concerning onboarding progress and training materials. Surveying new staff during their initial weeks and months at a hospital can help improve retention and identify ways to strengthen the onboarding experience going forward. Wellness programs and available benefits . Once open enrollment is completed, many employers use text campaigns to drive engagement with company-sponsored health and wellness initiatives. Text messages can also be sent periodically to staff to remind them about available benefits and share links staff can access to learn more information about their benefits and review frequently asked questions. Such texts encourage staff to use available benefits, which contributes to staff wellness and satisfaction. 2. Important notifications The ability to send significant notifications to large numbers of staff, if not all employees, and do so fast and with great certainty that those notifications will be read is very important in a hospital setting. Communications often concern urgent matters and issues that pertain to many, most, or all staff. Here are examples of important notifications that hospitals and health systems we work with have communicated via text: Shelter-in-place alerts. Unfortunately, the need for such alerts is rising. Fortunately, text messaging can help. The speed and ubiquity of text communication is the ideal way to communicate shelter-in-place alerts for emergency situations. Surveyors on site. When surveyors from The Joint Commission, CMS, or other agencies arrive, a hospital can send a text to employees who should know about the survey with a message informing them that surveyors are on site. Drills and alerts. We've had hospital clients use text messaging to inform employees when a drill or practice alert will be run and then send a second text when the drill or alert is concluded. This helps improve participation and engagement and avoid confusion around the timing and purpose of drills and alerts. Weather-related updates. Text messaging is the best means of providing employees with weather-related schedule and work updates. It's a simple way to manage communication leading up to, after, and even during a weather disaster. Texting is especially helpful when updates are frequent, such as when a tornado, hurricane, or wildfire is approaching a community. 3. Timely reminders One of the top reasons people prefer texting to other communication methods is the convenient delivery of timely reminders. After all, people do not want to miss matters of potential importance. That can be everything from open enrollment responsibilities, as referenced earlier, to informing staff about a cash bonus for a new employee referral, on-campus blood drive, upcoming scrub sale, and volunteer opportunity. Throughout the year, hospital human resources departments will likely have extensive opportunities to use their two-way texting to share such timely reminders. 4. Positive news and staff support We're seeing human resources departments send texts that share positive news and lift staff morale. Examples include organization milestones and recognitions (e.g., "named a best place to work"), employee milestones and recognitions (e.g., "celebrating 25 years with us this month"), noteworthy clinical accomplishments (e.g., increases in hospital quality star ratings ), and new leadership hires. We're also seeing HR departments text uplifting words to staff. This can be everything from motivational quotes, to uplifting messages, to words of encourage and appreciation. These small gestures can help remind staff about how much they are valued and provide an organization with another way of showing appreciation. Add Texting to Your Human Resources Communications Repertoire For communication with hospital and health system employees, two-way texting is a channel that should be a part of any human resources department's strategy. In fact, a strong case can be made that it should be the backbone for HR communications. Texting requires no behavior change from employees: all they must do is provide their mobile number and check when text messages come in, which most already do. Some two-way texting platforms, like Dialog Health, do not require staff to download an app or access a special website. Every mobile phone currently used by a hospital employee can send and receive text messages. The channel is there every day and usually checked frequently. Now is the time to start using texting to engage your employees more effectively. Find out what two-way text messaging with Dialog Health can do for your hospital by emailing info@dialoghealth.com or calling (877) 666-1132.

Call centers supporting healthcare organizations use Dialog Health texting solutions every day to help them improve patient contact rates, strengthen patient engagement, and reduce costs. Let's take a closer look at four top reasons call centers nationwide are choosing Dialog Health — and why your call center should consider doing so as well. 1. Generate Inbound Phone Calls For their initial communication with patients, call centers are sending texts to recipients asking them to call a phone number provided in the text message. We like to look at this as: "Dialog Health makes your phones ring." It is much easier, cheaper, and more efficient to answer an inbound call than to make an outbound call. As a business, call centers will always answer the phone whereas when an agent calls a patient, this becomes a game of "hope" — as in, "I hope the person answers the call. I hope I can leave a voicemail if they do not answer. I hope they listen to the voicemail. I hope I do not need to call again." That's a lot of hoping, and unfortunately a lot of hoping that fails. Here are a few examples of ways call centers are generating inbound calls: Appointment scheduling reminders Revenue cycle management (e.g., outstanding balance, discussion about payment options) Recalls (e.g., annual physicals/wellness visits, mammograms, colonoscopies) Post-appointment engagement (e.g., follow-up care, satisfaction surveys) Referrals 2. Enhance Communication Strategies Call centers can create and automate texting campaigns to supplement existing communication outreach efforts. By using text messaging to check in with patients about an appointment or following treatment, share directions to a facility, provide information on a treating physician, deliver educational resources, and a host of other ways, call centers can make patients feel like they are receiving "white-glove" services. 3. Analyze Contact Success Dialog Health's robust and real-time AnalyticsPRO module allows agents to quickly determine who needs to be contacted further (i.e., did not receive an initial text), why they need to be contacted, and how they should be contacted next (i.e., text or phone call). 4. Improve Productivity and Reduce Costs When making phone calls, call center agents can only communicate with one customer at a time and usually for a few if not several minutes per call. With the Dialog Health texting solution, agents can simultaneously manage multiple conversations. The result: dramatically streamlined workflows, improved efficiencies, and many, many more patients engaged in a day. Dialog Health: The Leader in Call Center Text Messaging Call center operators and agents love texting with Dialog Health. See why by filling out this form . You'll receive a demo of the Dialog Health solutions and have your questions about texting answered by one of our call center experts.

Dialog Health has published a complimentary eBook sharing best practices for employers looking to use text messaging to improve employee communication and engagement. Employers must ensure critical and often time-sensitive messages are going out to and reaching large groups of staff, some of whom may be working remotely full or part time. That's why more businesses are adding texting as a communication channel. To help organizations maximize the benefits of text messaging, our new eBook provides 7 best practices for leveraging text messaging and a texting solution to achieve better employee engagement, communication, education, and satisfaction. The resource shares recommendations for when organizations should use texting — including for open enrollment, emergency alerts, surveys, and emotional support — and tips for helping ensure text messages achieve their intended results. The introduction to the eBook summarizes why companies are increasingly leaning upon text messaging as their primary means of communication with staff: "When employers want to better ensure that a message reaches their employees — regardless of where they work — they turn to text messaging. Texting is the communication channel that allows businesses to quickly, reliably, and successfully communicate with their employees. It's the method of communication most likely to reach, be read, and engaged with by employees. It's also fast, convenient, and reduces the workload of HR (human resources) professionals and other staff tasked with staff communication." The free eBook is now available for download . Organizations interested in adding text messaging should visit email info@dialoghealth.com , call (877) 666-1132, or fill out this form .

Why are call centers increasingly adding and relying upon text messaging? In Dialog Health Co-Founder and Chief Revenue Officer Brandon Daniell's new Call Center Times column, he explains why a growing number of call centers are making texting an integral component of their communications and how text messaging is a customer engagement difference-maker. The column — " Why Call Centers Are Going All-in on Text Messaging " also contrasts texting to calling and summarizes what's required for a call center to add text messaging as a communication channel. As Daniell states, "The unmatched engagement effectiveness, ease of sending texts, and ability to monitor communication success along with low setup and outreach costs makes text messaging the best channel for agents to interact with most customers." Access his column in Call Center Times .

For most employers, including healthcare organizations, communication with employees represents an ongoing challenge. More traditional communication methods can be cumbersome, time-consuming, and expensive, and often achieve suboptimal engagement. An employee might open and read information sent to them in the mail. They might open and read an email sitting in their inbox. They might notice and read a new poster hanging up in the breakroom. When the communication is important, and especially when it's time-sensitive, that's a lot of mights , and a lot to leave to chance. Since healthcare human resources (HR) departments must ensure critical messages are reaching large groups of — if not all — personnel, some of which may now be working remotely part or full time, they are increasingly adding and heavily leaning upon a different communication channel: text messaging , and more specifically , two-way conversational texting. Text messaging is the communication channel that allows healthcare organizations and their human resources departments to quickly, reliably, and successfully communicate with staff . It's the method of communication most likely to reach, be read, and engaged with by employees. It's fast, convenient, and greatly reduces the workload of HR staff and others tasked with internal communications. Two-way texting is also a highly efficient and effective way for staff to communicate with HR managers and organization leadership. Healthcare Organizations Nationwide Are Using Text Messaging To Improve Staff Communication And Engagement When it comes to texting in America, there are some eye-opening statistics, including: More than 95% of text messages are read within three minutes of being sent. Responses to texts take an average of just 90 seconds. Text messages have an open rate of 98%. SMS text messaging 4-5x the open rate of email communication. 30% of voicemails linger unheard for three days or more. Average email open rate is under 20%. Cost of mailing just one stuffed envelope is $1.20-$2.00. Text messaging is also embraced by people of all ages. In a mobile-led world and healthcare industry where staff engagement has become an essential strategy for short- and long-term success, two-way text messaging is a necessity. And with texting a universally accepted communication platform, it has become an invaluable asset for year-round, organization-wide communications. Not all SMS texting solutions are the same. Healthcare organizations need solutions to fit their challenges. At minimum, an SMS texting platform should be cloud-based, include two-way texting capabilities and Tier 1 connectivity, comply with key standards (e.g., HIPAA, TCPA , CTIA , SSAE), and be easy to use and self-service for this environment of ever - changing, urgent communications. 12 Ways Healthcare HR Departments Use SMS Texting Let's look at 12 ways healthcare human resources departments are leveraging two-way text messaging throughout their enterprise to improve end-to-end staff communication and engagement. 1. Recruiting and interview communication Two-way conversational texting gives organizations a powerful solution that can help them more successfully attract and add the talent they need and overcome staffing shortage challenges. Facing intense competition for new personnel, texting can give organizations an advantage over competitors not utilizing this preferred communication channel. SMS text messaging can be used to: Announce open positions Ask current staff for referrals and recommendations Publicize referral bonuses Promote job fairs Communicate with prospective employees about job interview details (e.g., date, time, location, parking, directions, safety protocols) Follow up with prospective employees after interviews (e.g., "Do you have any additional questions about our opening?", "Do you require any more information about our organization?") 2. Sending onboarding SMS text messages Healthcare HR departments spend significant time overseeing the hiring of personnel — hiring that, for most organizations, has increased over these past few years as turnover has increased . The ability to automate onboarding-related messages via two-way texting can streamline the process by providing relevant information to new employees and steering them to additional resources, such as employee portals and required documentation. Uses for SMS texting include: Welcome message Links to onboarding materials Training dates and locations Resource sharing Deadlines and reminders Surveys about the experience 3. Communicating about staff requirements and responsibilities Healthcare staff have various requirements and responsibilities they must meet and complete, which will depend on their position, seniority, and organization type, among other factors. These requirements and responsibilities can be mandated by government agencies, accreditation organizations, the organization itself, and other entities. Ways to achieve compliance and complete responsibilities can include in-person activities (e.g., training/drills), completion of documentation (e.g., credentialing), online courses, and external seminars. It can be difficult for staff to keep track of these requirements and responsibilities, their deadlines, and what staff must do to achieve and maintain compliance. A healthcare HR officer, possibly working in conjunction with a healthcare compliance officer, safety officer, heads of departments, and other team members, can use texting to streamline the delivery of this information. This helps better ensure personnel do what they need to and when they need to do it, which will also help keep the organization compliant and its staff and patients safe. HR departments can send SMS text messages to inform staff about: Credentialing, privileging, and peer review Licensing OSHA HIPAA Cybersecurity Fire/life safety Antimicrobial stewardship Infection prevention/bloodborne pathogens Emergency management Vaccinations 4. Strengthening culture One could argue the importance of a healthcare organization's culture has never been greater. Culture is essential to retaining staff and attracting new employees. It's also critical for motivating staff to maximize their productivity and efforts to support their organization and one another. Text messaging is an effective way to keep culture in the spotlight and remind personnel of how much their employer values them and their work. Such uses for SMS texting include: Staff appreciation events Employee milestones Birthday/anniversary celebration Organization-provided food or service Feedback and suggestions Volunteering Professional development Continuing education Holidays 5. Sending open enrollment SMS text messages A series of automated texts that go out before open enrollment starts and throughout enrollment is a highly effective, yet simple way to increase engagement during this important period. Some SMS texting platforms include helpful filtering functionality, such as the ability to perform outreach by employment status (e.g., full-time, part-time), preferred language, and other qualities, all of which help with engagement and enrollment participation. Send text messages to: Announce start and end of open enrollment Share links to benefits, FAQs, portal, and Employee Assistance Program (EAP) Issue reminders about using benefits Provide contact details of the benefits representative Deliver open enrollment information and reminders 6. Texting important details about benefits In addition to using text messaging to support open enrollment, many healthcare organizations use text campaigns to drive engagement with and provide information about company-sponsored health and wellness initiatives. Text messages can also be sent periodically to staff to remind them about their available benefits (e.g., flu shots, mental health services, alternative therapies, fitness reimbursement, telehealth) and share links staff can access to learn more information about their benefits and review frequently asked questions. Such texts encourage staff to use available benefits, which contributes to staff wellness and satisfaction. Use SMS text messaging to provide: Reminders about benefits Links to additional information Details about wellness program offerings and challenges Instructions on how to fund and review an HSA and 401(k) Reminders about flu shots and other vaccinations Availability of W2 for taxes FAQs 7. Texting emergency and other time-sensitive information The pandemic and increased frequency of natural and manmade disasters have served as reminders about the need for business resilience planning and importance of an effective emergency communication channel to support a resilience program. Texting has proven to be a fast and efficient means of keeping personnel current on expectations and developments affecting operations, such as the risk of a disaster, a team member testing positive for viruses like COVID-19 and influenza, and facility closures and delays in opening. Examples of when two-way texting is particularly valuable are: Disaster alerts and updates Shelter in place and lockdown Community emergency Unexpected business closure Physical and cyber security breach The ability to send significant notifications to large numbers of staff, if not all personnel, and do so fast and with great certainty that those notifications will be read is very important in healthcare settings. Communications often concern urgent matters and issues — extending beyond emergencies — that pertain to many, most, or all staff. Use SMS texting to inform healthcare personnel about: Surveyors on site Drills and alerts Weather-related updates Loss of an employee Road and mass transit closures/delays that may affect commutes Start of construction (e.g., building, parking lot) Negative media reports 8. Providing a mass/group announcement Text messaging is the most effective means of communication when an organization needs to provide an update to or request of staff. Emergency and time-sensitive communications are examples of when mass/group text messaging comes in handy, but there are many other instances when an organization would want to reach and engage most or all personnel. Organizations are sending SMS text messages to staff about: Policy and procedure changes Construction updates, including those affecting parking and entering/exiting the building Scheduling gaps that must be filled Revised hours of operation Open positions (to aid with recruitment efforts) Updated staff schedules Start of open enrollment Company initiatives (e.g., blood drive, milestone celebration) 9. Conducting SMS text message surveys Looking at using two-way SMS texting for surveys, organizations are asking personnel to reply to questions via text or providing links within text messages that direct staff to longer, online surveys. Topics for staff surveys include employee experience, comfort with new policies and procedures, feedback on initiatives, and availability of educational resources. Targeted pulse surveys can also help organizations address issues before they become bigger problems, identify areas for improvement, and drive changes that can enhance staff satisfaction, productivity, and retention. 10. Sending date and deadline reminder messages One of the top reasons people prefer texting to other communication methods is the convenient delivery of timely reminders. After all, people do not want to miss matters of potential importance. That can include reminders about open enrollment responsibilities, town hall meetings, cash bonus for new employee referral, on-campus blood drive, and scrub sale s . Throughout the year, healthcare HR departments will likely have extensive instances to use two-way texting to share such timely reminders and help ensure staff do not miss out on responsibilities and opportunities. 11. Sharing positive news and providing staff support We're seeing healthcare HR departments send SMS texts that share positive news and lift staff morale. Examples include organization milestones and recognitions (e.g., "named a best place to work"), staff milestones and recognitions (e.g., "celebrating 25 years with us this month"), noteworthy clinical accomplishments (e.g., increases in hospital quality star ratings , successful accreditation), and new leadership hires. We're also seeing HR departments text uplifting words to personnel . This can be everything from motivational quotes, to uplifting messages, to words of encourage and appreciation. These small gestures can help remind staff about how much they are valued and provide an organization with another way of showing appreciation, which can help with staff satisfaction and retention. 12. Segmenting groups for targeted text messages One of the most beneficial functions of certain text messaging platforms is the ability for users to quickly send messages to specific groups of staff. While some messages may need to go to all staff, such as emergency announcements, many messages will only be applicable to certain segments of staff. This can include subgroup texts based on employment status, location (i.e., internal vs. remote), department, and seniority. The ability to send targeted, meaningful communications to these segments helps ensure staff engagement with messages. If staff receive non-applicable messages, they may begin to ignore messages or pay less attention to messages sent from their employer. Instances when the ability to send group-targeted two-way texts are as follows: Deadline reminders for those who have not completed a task (e.g., open enrollment, certification, training, annual staff survey) New staff orientation Leadership/management meeting Department meeting and training Benefits changes and updates Messages for remote staff Add SMS Texting to Your Healthcare Human Resources Communications Repertoire For communication with healthcare personnel, two-way conversational texting is a channel that should be a part of any human resources department's strategy. In fact, one could make a strong case that it should be the backbone for healthcare HR communications. Texting requires no behavior change from staff: all they must do is provide their mobile number and check when text messages come in, which most already do. Some two-way texting platforms, like Dialog Health , do not require staff to download an app or access a special website. Every mobile phone currently used by personnel can send and receive text messages. The channel is there every day and usually checked frequently. For healthcare organizations that want to use SMS texting to communicate with patients, choosing HIPAA-compliant text messaging solutions like those from Dialog Health is critical. Now is the time to start using text messaging to engage your staff more effectively and efficiently.

FRANKLIN, Tenn. — Dialog Health , a healthcare industry-leading two-way text messaging platform that improves staff and patient engagement, announces the publication of its latest eBook, " How Healthcare HR Leaders Are Leveraging Text Messaging Solutions to Drastically Improve Employee Engagement ." The eBook identifies some of the most common and beneficial ways healthcare organizations and their human resources (HR) departments are using two-way conversational text messaging to achieve significant, enterprise-wide improvements in employee communication, engagement, productivity, and satisfaction. These efforts are helping healthcare providers decrease staff workload, hours, and burnout while strengthening everything from recruitment and retention, to onboarding and training, to emergency preparedness and response. The areas highlighted and discussed in the eBook are as follows: Staff requirements and responsibilities Onboarding communication Time-sensitive notifications Announcements Open enrollment campaign Company benefits information Enhance company culture Recruiting and interview communication Surveys and questionnaires Date and deadline reminders Positive news and staff support Group-specific communications Two-way text messaging has gone from a "nice-to-have" to a "need-to-have" communication and engagement channel for healthcare human resources departments. Texting is fast, convenient, and inexpensive. It's the method of communication most likely to reach, be read, and engaged with by employees. Since healthcare HR departments must ensure critical messages are reaching large groups of — if not all — employees, some of whom may now be working remotely, they are increasingly adding and then leaning heavily upon texting. A compelling argument can be made that two-way, conversational texting should be the backbone for healthcare HR communications — and the Dialog Health platform is the solution of choice for a growing number of healthcare organizations. As Raymond Hino, CEO of Southern Coos Hospital & Health Center, said, "I would highly recommend Dialog Health to any employer interested in adopting a platform for quick, timely, and easy text messages to both employees and customers that are quickly opened and read. With texting, our hospital employees are now receiving timely messages about events, deadlines, and even community-wide emergency events. I think any employer that ignores this incredible opportunity for real-time communications is missing out on a potentially game-changing solution." Download Dialog Health's new healthcare HR eBook here . About Dialog Health Dialog Health is a cloud-based, HIPAA-compliant, two-way conversational text messaging software that improves patient/customer and employee engagement. Dialog Health solutions are trusted by Fortune 500 organizations and proven to decrease staff workload and burnout, reduce no-shows, improve productivity and efficiency, increase revenue, strengthen compliance, and boost staff morale. Dialog Health's multiple texting solutions can be used across an organization's enterprise or for targeted departmental outreach and communication improvement initiatives. To learn how Dialog Health's solutions are transforming the way organizations communicate and engage, visit dialoghealth.com , call (877) 666-1132, and follow Dialog Health on LinkedIn .

It's National Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month , so we wanted to bring attention to one of the most effective ways gastroenterology centers and practices are achieving improvements to their screening programs: HIPAA-compliant text messaging. We work with such organizations to help them leverage the power of texting to enhance patient engagement in ways that drive up screening volume and patient compliance. With about 30% of U.S. adults aged 50 to 75 years behind on their colorectal cancer screening, and 2021's revised guidelines expanding the recommended age for colorectal cancer screening to include 45-50, there is a tremendous opportunity to grow the number of people undergoing colorectal cancer screenings. As we know, early detection through prevention and screening dramatically reduces fatalities from colorectal cancer. Conversational, two-way text messaging has proven itself to be a powerful tool to support these efforts. Benefits of Increased Use of GI ASC Text Messaging Here are 10 of the reasons why GI ambulatory surgery centers (ASCs) are increasingly relying upon texting. 1. Text messaging is widely embraced People are already opting in to receive text messages from a wide range of businesses, including airlines, credit card companies, banks, service providers like auto repair shops and hair salons, and many others. By adding texting, GI centers and practices are using a channel already adopted and embraced by a healthy majority of their patients, including many older patients. 2. Used by targeted patients Nearly all American adults have mobile phones and use text messaging in their daily lives, which includes patients who fall in the recommended screening age range of 45-75. AARP has found that among those ages 50-69, text messaging is the technology tool most used to stay connected. This dispels the commonly perpetuated myth that age is a barrier to texting . 3. Easy to use For a GI organization to use two-way texting — the most effective means of using texting for patient engagement, which enables information to be pushed to and pulled from patients, caregivers and facility staff — all it typically needs is its existing computers and patients' mobile phone numbers. No special hardware is required. For patients, two-way texting requires no behavior change. They just need to provide their mobile number to their provider, opt-in to the texting program, and know how to open and, if necessary, respond to the texts they receive. 4. High level of patient engagement Data has shown that texting can achieve a reach rate well-exceeding 80%.(1) For GI providers, this is particularly helpful for powering screening recall programs . Since patients' mobile numbers typically do not change, phone numbers captured and entered into your text messaging system are likely to remain the same for years. 5. Reduces cancellations, no-shows and no-goes The work that goes into connecting with a patient and scheduling them for their screening will be for naught if the screening does not proceed as planned. A missed screening means a patient is not only failing to receive the care they need, increasing their risk for colorectal cancer, but if a GI center learns a patient will be missing their appointment too close to its scheduled time, this could lead to unused procedure room capacity. This then translates to a missed billing opportunity and staffing costs not offset by billable services. Texting patients is proven to reduce cancellations, no-shows and no-goes. Prior to the scheduled screening, gastroenterology ASCs can send messages that remind patients about the procedure and prep requirements, include a phone number if patients have questions or concerns, and give directions to the organization. When text messages are sent far enough in advance asking patients to confirm their procedure, a center may have adequate time to fill an opening if a patient indicates a need to reschedule. 6. Reap the benefits of automation GI organizations can schedule text messages to go out to patients in advance, whether that be days, weeks or months before recommended screening appointments. With such automation, there's no risk of falling behind and creating a backlog of outreach efforts. 7. Improves optimization of staffing and productivity With healthcare organizations, including GI providers, struggling with staff retention and recruitment, text messaging is helping ease workloads and allowing more efficient use of available staff time. Text messaging can help centers maintain a more optimal schedule, limiting the need for overtime and PRN staff. Texting substantially decreases the number of phone calls staff must make to and receive from patients and caregivers. The time saved on calls can allow a GI ASC and practice to reduce the number of hours staff need to work or provide an opportunity for staff who would be making these calls to help with other work that can strengthen clinical and financial performance. 8. Delivers cost savings that add up fast The cost of sending a stuffed envelope, taking into consideration staff time and materials, can exceed $2.00. Most outreach efforts by phone require multiple calls — and are often unsuccessful. Every call takes up precious, expensive staff time. The cost to send a text message is usually pennies. 9. Enables more effective colon cancer screening program oversight Since two-way text messages are delivered through a technology platform, GI centers will gain the ability to track and evaluate their screening program's by running reports and reviewing key metrics. On a high level, centers should have access to data concerning the number of patients subscribed to a screening recall program, how many mobile phone numbers are in the center's database (which can be increased), the number of patients who successfully received text messages, and how many patients proceeded with scheduling an appointment and then maintaining that appointment. Such information and other data captured by a texting technology platform can help a GI center and practice identify opportunities for improvement and more effectively benchmark performance. 10. Improves usage of online resources Since nearly all mobile phones have access to the internet, text messaging is an effective way to steer patients to resources and information on the web. For example, if a GI center has a portal patients can use to schedule their own appointment, a text can inform patients that they can schedule their screening online and include a hyperlink to the portal. Linking can also be a simple way to notify, educate and provide support to patients. Links can steer patients to prep instructions, frequently asked questions, directions to a facility, educational resources and more. Adding Text Messaging to Your GI Center HIPAA-compliant, conversational two-way texting is a communication platform that's proving to be an asset to GI facilities nationwide. By embracing the convenience, speed, and ubiquity of two-way texting, GI centers and practices are increasing patient engagement, improving staff performance, and boosting patient volume and revenue. Most importantly, and in the spirit of the goals of National Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month, texting is helping more patients who benefit from colorectal cancer screening to undergo the procedure and get the care they need. To learn more about Dialog Health's industry-leading two-way texting platform, used by leading GI ASCs and practices nationwide, schedule your demo today . [1] Dialog Health 2022 data

Strengthening patient recall programs is one of the most efficient and effective ways for healthcare organizations to increase revenue while better ensuring patients receive the preventive services that can keep them healthier and reduce risks. One of the simplest ways for healthcare organizations to accomplish these objectives while reducing costs is to communicate and engage with patients using conversational two-way text messaging, writes Dialog Health Co-Founder and Chief Revenue Officer Brandon Daniell in his latest Medical Economics column . In the column, "How text messaging improves patient recall and practice revenue," Daniell explains why the manual labor associated making phone calls and sending letters for patient outreach are significant obstacles to recall program success. He then discusses many of the substantial benefits of using text messaging as the communication method to drive recall programs. Access Daniell's column in Medical Economics .

Dialog Health will be exhibiting at the American Society for Healthcare Human Resources Administration (ASHHRA) 2023 Annual Conference and Exposition. The meeting is being held April 23–25 in Charlotte, N.C. Attendees of ASHHRA 2023 are invited to visit Dialog Health at Booth 326 to learn why our conversational, two-way texting solutions are used by Fortune 500 human resources leaders nationwide to improve their employee communications and engagement. The ASHHRA Annual Conference and Exposition brings together healthcare HR leaders from across the continuum of care to learn about the latest trends impacting the HR function in the healthcare work environment. To schedule an in-person meeting with a Dialog Health representative at the conference, email info@dialoghealth.com or call 877.666.1132.

Recent rules concerning scam text messaging issued by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) may have a substantial impact on the methods of communication used by businesses and the success of those communications in reaching and engaging customers. In his latest Call Center Times column , "New FCC Rules Further Enhance Value of Text Messaging for Call Centers," Dialog Health Co-Founder and Chief Revenue Officer Brandon Daniell summarizes the FCC's rules and explains why they're great news for businesses like call centers using or planning to use texting. He then shares four of the most significant reasons and ways call centers are currently leveraging text messaging. As Daniell states, "Text messaging has been proven to be a simple, yet highly effective and efficient means of engaging and communicating with customers. The FCC's rules should only help to solidify texting as an integral — if not central — component of any call center's communications." Access Daniell's column in Call Center Times .

Dialog Health will be exhibiting at the Ambulatory Surgery Center Association (ASCA) 2023 Conference & Expo. The meeting is being held May 17–20 in Louisville, Ky. ASCA 2023 are invited to visit Dialog Health at Booth 526 to learn why ASCs nationwide, including some of the largest national surgery center operators, use our conversational, HIPAA-compliant, two-way texting solutions to improve financial, operational, and clinical performance. The ASCA Annual Conference and Exposition brings together ambulatory surgery center professionals from throughout the country to for resources, education, and networking opportunities. To schedule an in-person meeting with a Dialog Health representative at ASCA 2023, email info@dialoghealth.com or call 877.666.1132.