Press Release 22 December 2009
A text message (SMS) based appointment booking service has been developed for the practical organisation of H1N1 mass vaccination campaigns that will begin in early 2010. This service is expected to increase
interest in said vaccinations and facilitate the related queue management. In municipalities introducing the service, the citizens will obtain the vaccination at a time that best suits them. Last week, the service was piloted
by the city of Oulu in cooperation with the Finnish software company, Digia.
Developed by Digia, the text message based appointment booking service was first tested in the Kaakkuri technology health care centre in the city of Oulu on Friday 18 December. Over 1,100 local citizens aged 16-24 received
an invitation to participate in this test and over 120 of them signed up during the next 24 hours. 96 per cent of the respondents preferred text message queuing to traditional queuing while 71 per cent of the respondents said that the text message
queuing service influenced their decision to take the vaccination.
"In my opinion, this indicates that the service may increase interest in H1N1 vaccinations and thus even improve national health. The pilot project went well and the feedback that citizens gave about the text message service at the place of
vaccination in Oulu was very positive in all respects. The health centre personnel, on the other hand, were pleased with the fact that they were able to anticipate the number of persons arriving for vaccination as well as their arrival times", said Hannu Sehm, director, Digia Oyj.
The service developed by Digia facilitates the work and resourcing of health care personnel during vaccination campaigns while providing them with efficient and easy-to-use monitoring and management tools. In addition to text message
queuing, municipalities can continue to implement their traditional queuing system. The introduction of the service requires neither system investments nor integration with other information systems from the municipalities.
For citizens, Digia's service provides an opportunity to register for the vaccination queue of their choice by sending a text message. When the vaccination day approaches, the customer receives an automatic text message suggesting a vaccination
appointment time which he or she can also cancel or postpone. For a presentation of the service (in Finnish, English version will be published in the near future), please visit
www.rokotusjono.fi.
Registration for the vaccination queue by sending a text message is possible from all Finnish mobile phone subscriptions. The service is suitable for the grand majority of the population; the only requirement is that you own a mobile phone and know how
to send and receive text messages.
"At present, the greatest concern seems to be that working age people choose not to take the vaccination. I am confident that this text message-based appointment booking service will lower this threshold since it is perfect for today's busy people", Sehm explains.
Media contacts:
Camilla Lindfors, Communications Manager, Digia Plc, tel. +358 (0)40 838 6686
Digia in brief
Digia delivers information and communication technology solutions worldwide. Our strength in smart mobile devices and real-time information systems enables a mobile life. Our clients are entities who want to capitalise on digital information in their business.
New technologies, well thought usability and modern service channels enables real time access for correct information or services through their computer, a mobile handset or any other digital device. We are based in the Nordics, operating globally and
employing over 1,450 professionals. We are listed on the NASDAQ OMX Helsinki (DIG1V).
www.digia.com