Spruce supports communicating with a patient’s family members or caregivers by adding them as separate contacts or managing them within the patient’s conversation thread. Family members can be included in secure app-based messaging when appropriate, keeping all parties informed while maintaining the patient’s privacy boundaries.
IN THIS ARTICLE
- Spruce standard conversations are linked to phone numbers
- When family members share a phone number
- Secure Conversations
- Frequently Asked Questions
Spruce standard conversations are linked to phone numbers
Spruce conversations are organized and identified by phone number. For many patients, a phone number is used by only one person, and is therefore a unique identifier. For our practices who work with families, however, we understand it is common for parents/guardians, spouses/partners, and minor children to share a phone number.
When family members share a phone number
RECOMMENDED:
When two or more family members use the same phone number, we recommend that you maintain just one standard conversation that tracks all SMS text messages and phone calls that are exchanged with that phone number, regardless of which family member is the subject of a certain message. You should have contacts for all members of the family that are patients, but you can leave the phone number attached to just one contact (likely the one who's number it actually is).
Here's a video showing how you can set up contacts with a shared phone number. The video refers to pediatrics, but this approach can be utilized for any similar case, such as family contacts or patient caregivers:
Secure Conversations
On Spruce you can have multiple secure conversations with the same patient account, which can help in communicating with families. For example, if you have a mother and her 3 children as patients, but only the mother has a Spruce account, you can have 4 distinct secure conversations with the mother. One for her and one or each child and she can select which one she wants to use when she sends you messages. You can read more about that here.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I message a patient’s family member through Spruce?
Yes. You can create a contact for a family member or caregiver and communicate with them via SMS or secure app-based messaging from Spruce.
Can a parent receive messages about their child’s care through Spruce?
Yes. Create a contact for the parent or guardian and manage their communication the same way you would a patient contact.
Can multiple family members be on the same Spruce conversation thread?
Spruce supports multiple participants in secure app-based messaging conversations for family or caregiver communication.