Sexually Transmitted Infections Vol. 82; No. 1: P. 49-51 (02..06)

A.S. Menon-Johansson; F. McNaught; S. Mandalia; A.K. Sullivan

The authors of the current study sought to assess the effectiveness of a text message result service within an inner London STD clinic. Over a six-month period, demographic data, diagnoses, and time to diagnosis and treatment were collected for patients receiving text messages and for a matched standard recall group. The authors collected data on messages sent, staff time, and cost in relation to result provision.

Nine hundred fifty-two messages were sent during the study period. Data from the final month of analysis showed that 33.9 percent of all clinic results were provided via text messaging, resulting in a saving of 46 hours of patient staff time per month. A total of 49 messages requested the patient return for treatment, with 28 of these for untreated Chlamydia trachomatis (CT) infection. Compared with the recall group, the mean number of days to diagnosis was significantly shorter in the text message group (7.9(3.6) vs. 11.2(4.7) p<0.001). Median time to treatment was 8.5 days (range 4-27 days) for the texting group, compared with 15.0 days (range 7-35) for the recall group, p=0.005.

"Patients with genital CT infection are diagnosed and receive treatment sooner since the introduction of a text message result service," the authors concluded. "The introduction of this service has resulted in a significant saving in staff time."