Feasibility of Using Text Messaging to Identify and Assist Patients With Hypertension With Health-Related Social...

Area of Science:

• Health Services Research
• Clinical Informatics
• Public Health

Background:

• Health-related social needs significantly impact health outcomes and chronic disease management.
• Healthcare organizations recommend screening for social needs, but implementation data, particularly for hypertension, are limited.
• Short Message Service (SMS) text messaging is a potential tool for efficient screening, yet its feasibility requires further investigation.

Purpose of the Study:

• To determine the feasibility of using SMS text messaging to screen patients with hypertension for unmet health-related social needs.
• To assess patient completion rates and demographic differences in a cross-sectional study.

Main Methods:

• A cross-sectional study randomly selected 200 adult patients with hypertension from an academic health system in North Carolina.
• Patients received an SMS text message with a link to a 6-question survey on food, housing, and transportation needs.
• Demographic characteristics of completers versus non-completers were analyzed.

Main Results:

• SMS text messages were undeliverable to 4.5% of patients; only 8.5% (17 patients) completed the questionnaire.
• No significant demographic differences were found between those who completed the questionnaire and those who did not.
• Of the 17 completers, 29.4% reported unmet needs, but only 2 opted for resource information.

Conclusions:

• SMS text messaging alone demonstrated low feasibility for screening health-related social needs in this hypertension patient population.
• Alternative or complementary screening modalities may be necessary.
• Future research should explore SMS feasibility in diverse populations and its effectiveness when combined with other methods.