Old Friends Never Die - BUT their devices do!

In September, I heard from Carla, a long-time OnTimeRx user who had just lost a dear friend - her old Palm PDA. She gave me permission to reprint her email in hopes that it might help others in a similar situation. Here it is:

"I used to use your program, OnTimeRx, on my Palm and loved it. It meant that I could have periods of the day when I did not have to focus on my illness plus it allowed me to know when I took my last dose. My medication affects my memory and before your software, I was never sure when or even whether I had last taken a scheduled dose. When my Palm PDA died, my husband bought me a Nokia E71 phone. It is a great gadget, but I very much miss my OnTimeRx. Are you planning to create a version for the Symbian S60 System? I was very disappointed that there is next to nothing out there other than OnTimeRx."

As an independent software developer, you can never receive too many of those kinds of complimentary comments. But it was very painful to have to tell her... there is no Symbian version of OnTimeRx. I made some suggestions for alternative solutions, like: switching phones, using automated reminder service, etc., and she responded further:

"Prior to my "health challenges" I was a Systems Analyst, so I also understand the difficulties of trying to be all things to all people (or to all systems). Wouldn't it be grand to have just one programming language/platform for all our needs and desires? As with all things in our universe, such a Heaven would have to be paid for with many jobs and all the worlds created by them. Sigh."
It is true, " ... you can't please all of the people all of the time." But we've sure tried for the past 9 years!

Unfortunately, there are just too many different devices with too many variables now. It's even getting difficult for the largest software developers to keep up. As great as it would be to have a single programming language, no one seriously sees that as "the answer". The web-based "SaaS" approach (Software as a Service) may be the closest thing in the future.

Almost daily there are press releases about how various entities are now using text and voice messages in health care. This is really not new! We've been doing it for 5 years already; and we agree, this seems to be the most promising and viable approach to reach the largest market and do the most good.

There are millions upon millions of potential users, who need some kind of reminder help to manage their medications or those of a family member. We strongly believe in the OnTimeRx reminder concept and are currently upgrading our automated OnTimeRx service, so it will work even better for the billions of people who use ordinary cell phones and land lines.

Fortunately, pharmacies are beginning to use reminders for refills now. Hopefully, some day soon, an integral part of the doctor's prescription will include a simple check box to order daily medication reminders. That could significantly reduce the $200+ billion that's being wasted in the US annually due to noncompliance. Everyone stands to benefit from improved medication adherence/compliance.

In the meantime, OnTimeRx software and services will continue to provide the best possible reminder programs, along with excellent support for all of the platforms we have already developed.

Thanks again for your emails, Carla. I hope we'll always be able to help you take your meds on time...