Mine have already, and I assumed it was becoming ubiquitous already.
I'm frustrated with it because I get multiple texts, multiple emails, and multiple voice calls & voice messages for every appointment I make. I want maybe one text reminder the day before or a couple of hours before and no more, just in case I forgot to set my own reminder. But usually I do have it in my calendar reminding me anyway, just two more notifications on top of the 10 the doc/dentist sends me... :P
Note that an individual has the right under the Privacy Rule to request and have a covered health care provider communicate with him or her by alternative means or at alternative locations, if reasonable. See 45 C.F.R. § 164.522(b). For example, a health care provider should accommodate an individual’s request to receive appointment reminders via e-mail, rather than on a postcard, if e-mail is a reasonable, alternative means for that provider to communicate with the patient. By the same token, however, if the use of unencrypted e-mail is unacceptable to a patient who requests confidential communications, other means of communicating with the patient, such as by more secure electronic methods, or by mail or telephone, should be offered and accommodated.
Patients may initiate communications with a provider using e-mail. If this situation occurs, the health care provider can assume (unless the patient has explicitly stated otherwise) that e-mail communications are acceptable to the individual. If the provider feels the patient may not be aware of the possible risks of using unencrypted e-mail, or has concerns about potential liability, the provider can alert the patient of those risks, and let the patient decide whether to continue e-mail communications.
https://www.hhs.gov/hipaa/for-professionals/faq/570/does-hip...
This is why fax is still so common in medicine and law (in law there’s also a belief that a fax confirmation says it’s been delivered, if not read, while email is considered less reliable / more easily deniable.
In the above scenario that happened to me, sometimes you just don't have time to let the information find you.
I don’t usually answer my phone from unknown numbers, but when I get three calls from the same number within 3 minutes I’ll pick it up.
I called a local friend, he didn’t answer. I called his wife she didn’t either. Both follow the “don’t answer unknown numbers” rule. As do I.
It wasn’t until I called friend a second time that he answered the phone. His response? “When my wife got a call from the same number back to back is when I started thinking this must be worth my attention.”
I wonder if it would be possible to set up something like this more rigorously. Give everyone unrelated two phone numbers. The first never rings the phone. The second only rings if the first was called within the last minute.
I'm surprised robocallers don't do this too
Fortunately, I only get a few of those a week, so far.
Given my experience with robocall and stuff, I _do_ want to be unfriendly. I hate to guts that a lot of people assume that they can interrupt you at any given moment. One guy called me when I was driving and wasn't having any of that, kept on complaining that I didn't pick up.
My current plan right now is to have a landline number from my internet provider (that's SIP essentially). Whenever anybody requires a phone number give that.
Now, there will be an voice mail device on my side with message: "Hello, you've reached p2t2p and his wife. We _DO_ _NOT_ appreciate your call. If you think your message is important, leave a message and we maybe, just maybe call you back. Otherwise, use email please".
And that is not even for bloody robocalls. Every single bloody prick think they are important enough to steal my time. Hey, I wrote you an email so respond to email, dumbass, don't call me. There were one windows installation company that stopped interacting with as soon as I told them that I won't pick up the phone and asked them to use email.
I guess the ultimate solution is to have my iPhone in permanent "contacts only" mode.
(Yes, I know, a significant portion of my email ends up in their hands anyway.)
My mobile carrier puts "scam likely" on calls that its algorithms have determined are likely spam, I wish there was an android option to just not ring the phone if that was the caller ID name.
Maybe after a few popular apps do that, the phone companies will start to fear losing relevance and finally take effective action against phone spam.
It only bit me once in several years - I was expecting a call-back from a doctor and they weren't in my contacts. Missed their call, which caused a several hour delay and some annoyance (thankfully not for something critical).
They actually also emailed and texted us both so in reality there was no chance of us missing that specific message...
I couldn't recommend doing so more. Text is so much easier, even if you have voicemail transcription.