Patient Care and Communication AutomationPurpose
1. Automate real-time SMS/email updates for patient families regarding ambulance location, estimated time of arrival, status changes (en route, arrived, delayed), and special instructions, reducing manual calls and enhancing family reassurance and operational transparency.
2. Ensure uninterrupted delivery of status updates via reliable communication channels to improve patient-family experience and satisfaction.
3. Integrate with dispatch, GPS, and EHR systems to synchronize current ambulance status with outbound messages.
Trigger Conditions
1. Change in ambulance status (dispatched, en route, arrived, detained, completed).
2. GPS-based milestone (e.g., 5 mins from patient, reached hospital).
3. Manual dispatcher override/input indicating special incidents or new ETA.
4. Request initiated by family via portal/app for live update.
5. Integration event from EHR or CAD indicating patient is assigned an ambulance.
Platform Variants
1. Twilio SMS
- Feature/Setting: "Programmable SMS" API; configure webhook to send message when ambulance status updates occur.
2. SendGrid
- Feature/Setting: "Mail Send" API; set up transactional template triggered from status change webhook for email alerts.
3. Plivo
- Feature/Setting: "Message API"; automatic SMS dispatch from backend integration with ambulance dispatch software.
4. Nexmo (Vonage APIs)
- Feature/Setting: "SMS API" and "Dispatch API"; real-time SMS configuration tied to CAD system events.
5. AWS SNS
- Feature/Setting: "Publish" via SNS Topic; subscribe SMS/email endpoints, trigger on ambulance event status.
6. Firebase Cloud Messaging
- Feature/Setting: "Cloud Function trigger"; send push notification (SMS/Email fallback) on ambulance updates.
7. Mailgun
- Feature/Setting: "Messages API"; programmatically send personalized ambulance status emails.
8. Infobip
- Feature/Setting: "SMS API"; connect webhook to CAD for outbound SMS with geolocation/status.
9. MessageBird
- Feature/Setting: "Flow Builder" + SMS API; automate status-triggered communications.
10. ClickSend
- Feature/Setting: "Transactional SMS" endpoint tied to real-time system status change.
11. Slack
- Feature/Setting: "Incoming Webhook"; notify families in dedicated Slack channels (optional).
12. PagerDuty
- Feature/Setting: "Events API" for escalation SMS/Email; handle exceptions or urgent updates.
13. Microsoft Graph (Outlook)
- Feature/Setting: "Send Mail" API; automate patient-family update emails via Office 365.
14. Google Cloud Functions + Gmail API
- Feature/Setting: Scripted email send triggered via HTTP request from dispatch event.
15. SAP Digital Interconnect
- Feature/Setting: "SMS 365" API; send global status alerts.
16. Telesign
- Feature/Setting: "SMS Verify" or "Notify" endpoints; deliver concise ambulance status.
17. Sinch
- Feature/Setting: "Programmable Messaging"; link patient and family contacts to ambulance event flow.
18. Routee
- Feature/Setting: "SMS Campaign API"; configure as transactional for status alerts.
19. IBM Watson Communication
- Feature/Setting: "Watson Assistant with SMS/Email integration"; context-triggered notification.
20. RingCentral
- Feature/Setting: "SMS API"; quick-setup transactional ambulance status messaging.
21. Zenvia
- Feature/Setting: "SMS API", integrate with EHR/disptach trigger.
22. OpenText RightFax
- Feature/Setting: "Fax2Mail" for regulatory compliance (optional fallback to email/SMS).
Benefits
1. Lowers manual communication workload for dispatch and operations staff.
2. Instant and reliable updates to family members enhance transparency and trust.
3. Reduces incoming calls to dispatch for status inquiries.
4. Flexible multi-channel approach ensures message delivery across SMS, email, and app notification.
5. Configurable to integrate with existing dispatch, GPS, and patient management systems.
6. Enables analytics on family engagement and improves patient/family satisfaction scores.