In the past, this blog has discussed the number of initiatives being launched by healthcare organizations to help patients remember to take medication. While those text message alerts are certainly effective, one program is still using SMS services while taking the doctor out of the equation.

According to a report in Mashable, there is a new, interactive pill box designed to send signals to user cell phones to remind them to take their medication. The Medfolio electronic pillbox is programmed to let users know when to take their pills. Each compartment in the box is labeled with a specific date and time. When it’s time to take the pill in that designated compartment, users who program their mobile phone numbers with the case will receive a text alert.

Contributor Zara Stone described the advantages of the device in the article.

“This feature is great for connected family members who want to play a more active part in their parent’s healthcare,” Stone wrote. “The box will sync information about the user’s medication journey to a secure server, so a family member can check whether or not their loved ones are actually adhering to their medication list.”

This is another reason why text messaging can serve as a valuable communication method. These text reminders don’t have to be long or complex to get the point across. A simple reminder message will let recipients know it’s time to do something important. No significant amount of time is required to set this up and once programmed it’s a relatively fool-proof method.

Companies can use this concept for a number of applications. Swift SMS Gateway offers the tools needed to launch effective text message reminder programs.