Healthcare accessibility is still being held hostage by phone queues, missed calls, and clunky portals. In this episode, Dr Andree Bates sits down with Josh Taylor of TxtSquad to explore why simple, secure texting can remove friction for patients and providers, and how AI can support the conversation without making care feel robotic.

Josh explains why SMS works where apps often fail: it is familiar, low effort, and asynchronous. That means patients can reply on their own time, while care teams can manage conversations in a way that fits real clinic workflows instead of forcing everyone into yet another platform.

They dig into the pharma and adherence angle too. Josh shares how two-way messaging helps teams move beyond generic reminders and uncover the real reasons people stop taking medication, opening the door to earlier support, smarter interventions, and better outcomes.

Finally, Josh outlines where AI adds value inside messaging: triage for common questions, translation, summarisation, and staff copilots. He also highlights the importance of compliance, clear boundaries, and human oversight when dealing with sensitive health information. The future, he suggests, is smarter communication across SMS, voice, and phone-based assistants, designed to meet patients where they already are.

Topics Covered

• Why portals and apps struggle with adoption in healthcare

• SMS as a low-barrier, asynchronous engagement channel

• Building a two-way patient to provider communication loop

• Medication adherence: understanding drop-off, not just sending reminders

• Patient assistance programmes and support at scale

• Clinical trial recruitment and retention using messaging

• AI in messaging: triage, translation, summarisation, and staff copilots

• Compliance considerations and handling sensitive information

• What comes next: voice agents and deeper integration with phone workflows

About the Podcast

AI for Pharma Growth is a podcast focused on exploring how artificial intelligence can revolutionise healthcare by addressing disparities and creating equitable systems. Join us as we unpack groundbreaking technologies, real-world applications, and expert insights to inspire a healthier, more equitable future.

This show brings together leading experts and changemakers to demystify AI and show how it’s being used to transform healthcare. Whether you're in the medical field, technology sector, or just curious about AI’s role in social good, this podcast offers valuable insights.

AI For Pharma Growth is the podcast from pioneering Pharma Artificial Intelligence entrepreneur Dr Andree Bates created to help organisations understand how the use of AI based technologies can easily save them time and grow their brands and business. This show blends deep experience in the sector with demystifying AI for all pharma people, from start up biotech right through to Big Pharma. In this podcast Dr Andree will teach you the tried and true secrets to building a pharma company using AI that anyone can use, at any budget.

As the author of many peer-reviewed journals and having addressed over 500 industry conferences across the globe, Dr Andree Bates uses her obsession with all things AI and futuretech to help you to navigate through the, sometimes confusing but, magical world of AI powered tools to grow pharma businesses.

This podcast features many experts who have developed powerful AI powered tools that are the secret behind some time saving and supercharged revenue generating business

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