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A patient waiting for lab results wants a timely response.
For your practice, however, sending those results requires attention to confidentiality, accuracy, and appropriate follow-up. A text sent to the wrong number or read outside its clinical context can create problems beyond a delayed response.
So, can doctors send lab results by text message? The answer depends on the communication method, the circumstances, and the safeguards your practice establishes.
So, before introducing texting into your results notification process, consider what information you will send, how patients will receive it, and which findings require a phone call rather than a written message.
The article discusses the limitations of standard SMS for doctors, procedures for securely texting lab results, and how services such as iPlum can enhance your practice's patient communication process.
Table of Contents
1. Why doctors shouldn't use standard SMS to text lab results
2. How to text lab results safely
3. iPlum helps secure patient communication
4. Frequently asked questions (FAQs)
5. Get a secure channel for lab results and follow-ups
Why doctors shouldn't use standard SMS to text lab results
Standard SMS creates privacy and administrative concerns when your practice uses it to send lab results.
While HIPAA does not categorically prohibit electronic patient communication, HHS requires reasonable safeguards, emphasizing precautions such as verifying the recipient and limiting the information disclosed.
That said, here's why doctors shouldn't use regular SMS for texting lab results.
Standard SMS can expose sensitive patient information
Standard SMS does not provide end-to-end encryption. Consequently, sending lab results through ordinary text messages can expose sensitive information to unauthorized access.
Sending less detail does not eliminate the concern. For example, a brief message confirming a positive test result still reveals medical information, even if you omit the full report.
Furthermore, a notification preview can display that result on a locked screen, allowing another person to read it.
Secure messaging also requires appropriate device and notification settings, but ordinary SMS offers limited protection over who opens a delivered message.
A wrong number can send results to the wrong recipient
An outdated contact record or a typing error can send lab results to an unintended recipient. Patients also change phone numbers, and carriers can reassign their previous numbers to new subscribers.
As a result, an employee could use the number recorded during a patient's previous visit and unknowingly disclose medical information to another person.
Besides, a delivery confirmation only indicates that the message reached its destination. It does not establish that the intended patient received or read the results.
Personal texting leaves your practice with limited oversight
When employees send lab results via personal text messages, the exchange can remain on their phones rather than be entered into the patient's medical record. As a result, other clinicians involved in the patient's care might not see the results notification or subsequent replies.
For example, a patient could respond with a question about an abnormal result, but the physician who receives it may be unavailable. Another clinician would then have limited visibility into the unanswered question.
Moreover, retrieving those conversations can prove difficult if an employee deletes messages, loses a phone, or leaves the practice. The ripple effect is that your practice is left struggling to establish what was communicated and whether follow-up occurred.
How to text lab results safely
Securely texting lab results requires an appropriate messaging service and a defined process for sending, reviewing, and documenting patient communication.
The following steps can establish that process within your practice.
Use a secure messaging service with a signed Business Associate Agreement
Choose a messaging service that provides encryption, individual user accounts, access permissions, and records of account activity.
These features allow your practice to restrict access to patient information and review how employees use the service.
It is worth noting that a signed BAA does not replace proper configuration. Before employees begin sending results, assign account permissions based on their responsibilities and establish procedures for revoking access when their employment ends.
Confirm the patient's identity and contact information
Patient registration and routine appointments provide opportunities to confirm contact details before your practice needs to send lab results. Asking patients to confirm their current number during these interactions reduces the chance of using outdated information.
Similarly, secure messaging enrollment allows your practice to connect the patient's verified identity with the account they will use to receive results.
If a caregiver receives results on the patient's behalf, the patient record should identify that person and document the basis for sharing relevant information with them.
Document the patient's communication preferences
Your practice can establish communication preferences during registration, alongside the contact details patients already provide.
Recording their choice of secure messaging, telephone calls, or other available methods gives employees a reference for sending results.
For patients who choose secure messaging, enrollment provides an opportunity to explain message access, response hours, and who to contact with questions.
Preferences also account for privacy concerns. A patient who shares a phone, for example, could prefer a call to another number. As patients update their details during subsequent visits, your practice can revise these preferences within the same process.
Explain the results and what the patient should do next
A result message can communicate the clinician's explanation and recommended follow-up together.
Naming the test and explaining the finding in plain language gives the patient context for any instructions that follow.
For example, when the clinician recommends repeat testing, the same message can include the timeframe and appointment-booking details. The patient then knows when to act and how to arrange the visit.
Similarly, a brief line explaining how to ask questions provides patients with a point of contact. Your practice can review those replies through its existing patient communication process and refer clinical questions to the appropriate clinician.
Record the exchange in the patient's chart
Result messages can form part of your practice's routine clinical documentation.
The chart entry can note the communicated results, the date, and the instructions provided, along with relevant patient responses and subsequent decisions.
If your messaging service automatically transfers conversations into the chart, those exchanges are available alongside other clinical notes. Otherwise, your practice can add the relevant details during its usual chart updates.
The record can also distinguish between message delivery and completed follow-up. For example, a patient's reply confirming an appointment provides more information than a delivery notification alone.
Documenting that response or any further contact attempts allows another clinician to see where follow-up stands.
iPlum helps secure patient communication
A phone service for patient communication should account for the lab results message and the subsequent conversation.
Patients could ask questions, request a call, or contact the practice when their physician is unavailable.
iPlum provides encrypted messaging, business calling, and Shared Line access and more for these exchanges.
Meanwhile, its Professional and Enterprise plans also include a BAA, providing your practice with a documented vendor agreement for its use of the patient communication service.
Here's how iPlum helps doctors secure patient communication.
Encrypted messaging with free patient accounts
iPlum's secure texting allows your practice and patients to exchange encrypted messages through an established secure channel.
Your practice sends an invitation, and the patient creates a free account and accepts it. The account allows secure bidirectional texting, separate for SMS and MMS.
Patients can then use either the iPlum mobile app or its browser portal.
For lab results appropriate for messaging, the conversation can contain the clinician's explanation, follow-up instructions, and the patient's questions.
A BAA available through the administrator account
iPlum provides a Business Associate Agreement with its Professional and Enterprise plans. Administrators can download the agreement from the HIPAA Compliance area of the online account.
Your practice, therefore, has access to the vendor agreement alongside its account administration. The agreement documents iPlum's responsibilities as a business associate;
Shared lines for patient follow-up
With iPlum Share Line, authorized users can make and receive calls, send texts, and view message histories through a shared practice number.
For example, an authorized colleague can review the existing conversation when a patient asks about arranging a follow-up appointment. The physician's absence does not leave that exchange accessible only from the physician's account.
In addition, administrators select the users and services associated with the shared line:
- Calls and texts: Designated employees can respond through the practice number.
- Conversation history: Users can review earlier messages before replying.
- Service permissions: Administrators can choose which services to share, such as voicemail or contacts.
With iPlum, for instance, a receptionist can answer a scheduling question, while the physician addresses a question about the result itself.
Access to the same conversation provides context for both responses. It also allows an authorized colleague to see what the patient has already been told before discussing appointment availability or passing on another question.
A separate number for calls about the lab results
iPlum provides a business line on an existing mobile phone, separating patient calls and messages from the physician’s personal number.
When a written explanation prompts further questions, the physician can call the patient through that business line. Patients consequently have a practice contact number for subsequent communication.
Additionally, web calling allows employees to make and receive calls through a computer browser.
Notification privacy and reusable messages
iPlum's notification privacy settings allow users to hide names and phone numbers in call, text, and voicemail alerts. These settings reduce the identifying information displayed when a patient contacts the practice.
Meanwhile, text templates allow your practice to save recurring administrative wording. Examples relevant to results follow-up are:
- Appointment details: Booking instructions for a consultation.
- Office information: Opening hours and contact details.
- Location information: The address for an upcoming visit.
Templates provide reusable administrative text, while the clinician's explanation remains specific to the patient's result.
Frequently asked questions (FAQs)
Can doctors send normal lab results by text?
Doctors can use secure messaging for normal results when appropriate. However, a normal finding still constitutes sensitive patient information and warrants privacy safeguards.
Does omitting the patient's name make a result message anonymous?
No. A phone number or details within the conversation can connect the result to a patient. Omitting the name alone does not make the message anonymous.
Do patients need a paid iPlum subscription to receive secure messages?
No. Patients can create a free account after receiving an invitation from your practice. They can then exchange secure messages through the iPlum app or browser portal.
Can patients reply to lab results sent through iPlum?
Yes. iPlum's secure channel allows bidirectional messaging. Patients can ask questions about their results, and your practice can respond within the same conversation.
Can another clinician review messages when the treating doctor is unavailable?
Yes. Authorized iPlum Shared Line users can view message histories and respond via the practice number, providing context for follow-up when a colleague is absent.
Does a delivered message confirm that the patient understood the result?
No. Delivery confirms neither comprehension nor completed follow-up. A patient's reply or subsequent conversation provides more information about their questions and intended actions.
Get a secure channel for lab results and follow-ups
Your patients need reliable contact when lab results arrive or questions arise afterward.
A dedicated practice number gives those conversations a consistent destination, while encrypted messaging protects the exchange of sensitive information.
With iPlum, your practice can offer secure texting through free patient accounts, return calls from a business number, and give authorized colleagues access to shared conversations.
Patients can, therefore, contact your practice even when their usual physician is unavailable.
Give your practice a dedicated service for patient calls, results, and follow-up.
