Texting Students: Best Practices from Our Recent Webinar
When the University of Oregon moved an appointment reminder text from one hour out to three hours out, students started canceling in time for the clinic to refill those slots. A small change produced real, meaningful results.
That story was one of many shared during our recent webinar on texting best practices for campus clinics. Medicat’s Chief Evangelist Ruth Patten and CEO Lauren Pragoff were joined by Erika Boyers, Senior Assistant Director of Patient Services and Health Information Management at the University of Oregon.
Here’s a recap of what we covered, plus a free AI prompt guide to help you write better texts!
Why Texting Students Works
Students rarely put their phones down. Emails pile up and get buried, but a text shows up as a quick notification they can read and act on in seconds. And to be honest, that’s true for all of us, not just students.
Texting is already part of daily life. We get texts about flight changes, dentist appointments, and deliveries. Most of those texts include a link to take the next step. Campus clinics can use the same pattern for:
- Appointment reminders for medical, counseling, and wellness visits
- Immunization compliance nudges tied to campus deadlines
- Event outreach, like mass flu and COVID vaccine clinics
- Portal alerts when a secure message, lab result, or visit summary is ready
Keep It to 160 Characters
Medicat’s texting uses the “short code” model with a 160-character limit built into the system. Longer messages can split into several texts depending on the carrier. Spaces, numbers, and emojis all count, so every character needs to earn its place.
Use AI to Write Warmer, Clearer Texts
Fitting a helpful, friendly message into 160 characters is hard. That’s where AI can help. Lauren’s advice: the more specific your prompt, the better your result.
Tell the AI tool exactly what you need. Try asking it to:
- Rewrite for warmth and clarity: “Your appt is at 10 am tomorrow. Don’t be late” can become something kinder.
- Lower the reading level: Many news outlets write for easy reading. You should too.
- Ease anxiety: Some visits feel stressful. The right words can help.
- Skip internal or clinical slang: Ruth noted that campus shorthand can confuse new and international students.
Here’s a sample prompt from the session: “Rewrite this to sound warm and student-friendly. I work at a college health center, and I’m texting a college student. Keep it under 160 characters.”
Want more prompts like these? Download our free AI prompt guide and put them to work on your next round of texts.
Protect Privacy and Get Consent Right
In our live poll, managing opt-in and consent tied for the top challenge, along with making sure students read their texts. Both matter, and both start with trust.
Keep Health Details Out of the Text
A text should never reveal protected health information. Ruth reminded attendees that notifications can pop up on a lock screen where anyone might see them. Avoid:
- The clinic’s full name or the provider’s name
- Test results, even negative ones
- Anything that hints at why the student is visiting
Instead, keep the text generic and link to the secure patient portal. At the University of Oregon, texts name the clinic type (like “immunization clinic”) but not the campus health center. Every text points students back to the portal for details.
Know Your School’s Opt-in Path
Start with your institution’s privacy and communication policy. If enrollment paperwork already allows texting and you manage immunization compliance in Medicat, you may be able to opt in the full student body. If not, a mass opt-in isn’t appropriate.
Ruth also shared that scheduling an appointment is generally treated as implied consent for that clinic to text the student. Check with your compliance team to confirm what applies on your campus. ACHA is a helpful resource for peer guidance on student health operations.
In Medicat, students can opt in or out through forms at each visit, a standing portal form, or a checkbox in their portal profile. They can also text STOP at any time to stop receiving text messages from your clinic.
How University of Oregon Reworked Reminder Timing
During the 2023-24 school year, Oregon sent appointment reminders 24 hours and one hour before each visit. Students weren’t canceling in time, and many arrived late. So, Erika’s team tested a new texting cadence. Here’s what they tried:
| Reminder | Why it works |
|---|---|
|
24 hours before |
Puts the visit on the student’s radar |
|
3 hours before |
Leaves time to cancel without a fee, plus the clinic can fill that slot |
|
20 minutes before |
Prompts students to make their way to the clinic and arrive early to check in |
The result: more timely cancellations and more students arriving within the check-in window. In fact, Oregon saw a 170.5% increase in timely cancellations over three years after beginning this experiment!
Beyond appointment reminders
Oregon and other schools now use texting students for more than visits. Erika shared a few ideas that other campuses can borrow:
- Referral recalls: A text nudge led more students to follow up with outside providers.
- TB screening follow-ups: High-risk results trigger a text pointing to next steps in the student portal.
- Student input: Erika works with her student health advisory board to test AI-drafted messages to increase survey completion rates.
One more tip: Oregon asked Medicat to protect the cell phone field, so nightly data feeds don’t overwrite the phone numbers staff update in person. Any Medicat customer can request this for particular fields through a support ticket.
Key Takeaways
Texting students works best when every message is short, private, and tied to one clear action. Timing matters too, as Oregon’s 24-hour, 3-hour, and 20-minute schedule shows.
