Demonstrating the varied ways in which SMS can be used, researchers at Swansea University are developing a new text messaging service designed to come to the aid of diabetes sufferers in an emergency.
Developed by the Centre for Nanohealth and e-Health Industries Innovation Centre at Swansea University and supported by the Academic Expertise for Business (A4B) programme, the new text messaging scheme involves the development of a new type of blood glucose monitor, which automatically sends readings to the mobile phones and computers of NHS staff.
The aim behind the exciting project is for the development of a cost-effective way for medical practitioners and family members to monitor the health of diabetic patients.
Diabetic patients suffering from low blood sugar levels can suffer from hypoglycaemia, leading many sufferers to faint, something that can prove fatal should they be alone at the time. The new SMS based system operates via a biosensor, which sends readings to NHS teams, as well as notifies family members immediately should a diabetic sufferer fall into a ‘hypo’.
This is just one example of how developers are using SMS API’s in new and exciting ways.
Although SMS use by business is increasing, particularly in the areas of advertising and marketing, many large organisations in the both public and private sectors are becoming increasingly aware of the potential of SMS to communicate with employees in a crisis.
The benefits of using SMS over telephone or email is obvious. Not only will an SMS service save you money, it will save you time, too: you can send a message to specific staff members or broadcast a message to your entire workforce within minutes and know they’ll get it, no matter where they are or what time of day it is.
A good SMS API will also allow SMS alerts to be sent to individuals or groups automatically when certain system thresholds are exceeded – great if you work in IT for example and need to monitor servers constantly.
It would be great to hear of any exciting ways how you have used SMS. Contact us if you would like to write a guest post – [email protected].
