Evaluating Technology-Driven Strategies for Enhancing Patient Outreach for Preventive Care: A Systematic Review

Preventive care is crucial in early disease detection and management, potentially reducing the need for extensive treatments and lowering healthcare costs. The integration of technology in health communication, especially through chatbots and SMS, offers innovative pathways to enhance patient adherence to recommended preventive screenings. However, evidence of the utility of these technologies outside immunization remains sparse. This systematic review aimed to evaluate the impacts of technology-based patient outreach methods, specifically chatbots and SMS, on response rates and care gap closures in preventive care screenings beyond immunizations. Utilizing the Patient/Population, Intervention, Comparison, Outcome (PICO) framework, this review searched five databases, including PubMed, CINAHL, Embase, IEEE Xplore, and ACM Digital Library, between January 2024 and July 2024. The search focused on studies evaluating the use of technology-based instruments like chatbots and mobile SMS, comparing them with traditional methods such as phone calls and mail. The primary outcomes investigated were response rates, failure to deliver, and the overall effectiveness of these technologies in the uptake of preventive screening measures. The search yielded 132 articles, with 10 meeting the inclusion criteria for full review. The findings highlight the significant potential of chatbots and SMS to enhance outreach programs for preventive care measure uptake, aligning with value-based care goals. However, the review highlighted the need for further methodologically robust research in this area that incorporates emerging technologies to strengthen conclusions. There is also a dearth of studies that evaluate emerging technologies like chatbots and address non-immunization preventative measures such as cancer screening and diabetes care. There is a noticeable gap in studies providing evidence on the cost-effectiveness of these technologies. While using chatbots and SMS in health communications appears promising, more comprehensive studies are required to understand their impact and cost-effectiveness in non-immunization screenings fully. Addressing these gaps is vital for developing scalable and sustainable preventive care strategies that can be integrated into the healthcare system.