Exco InTouch, the leading mobile messaging provider for the pharmaceutical industry, announces the introduction of ATLAS™, providing secure and cost-effective short message service (SMS) integration with pharmaceutical and healthcare systems such as EDC and CTMS. This unique, regulatory-compliant enterprise system is used to send SMS messages to any mobile phone across the globe in a wide range of languages. ATLAS is capable of processing over 50 messages per second, and can deliver to over 600 mobile phone operators in more than 200 countries, providing sponsors with unparalleled access capabilities including strong links with Verizon, Motorola and Nokia.

Mobile marketing techniques such as text messaging have become increasingly popular with the introduction of television shows like American Idol and Dancing With the Stars, where voting by SMS is encouraged. Receiving healthcare information on a cell phone can be beneficial for patients who wish to learn about their disease or treatment, as information is disseminated in short bursts in contrast to a heavily branded website or a costly and disposable product leaflet. Exco InTouch provides cost-effective, simple technology to communicate with and elicit a response from patients, clinical trial monitors, nurses and investigators participating in clinical trials and market studies. By utilising simple SMS technology, alerts are delivered promptly to the recipient via their own mobile phone. These SMS methods are non-intrusive, offering healthcare providers a simple cost-effective, personal, direct-to-patient system of communication.

Many organisations now focus high levels of resources on system integration in order to streamline processes. ATLAS eliminates the common problems associated with system integration by offering a simple integrated SMS solution that is easy to implement and use. As integration with ATLAS is based on open industry standards, implementation does not require the development of additional technology or extensive user training.

ATLAS from Exco InTouch enables pharmaceutical and healthcare organisations to easily add SMS capability to any application. ATLAS is a proprietary system on which SMS applications can be built and run, and can be integrated with a wide range of existing healthcare management systems. In order to meet the strict regulatory requirements governing the pharmaceutical and healthcare industries, Exco InTouch processes are committed to security, change control and design and development policies. Phone numbers and messages are encrypted at the database level within ATLAS, and the system address FDA and HIPAA regulations. ATLAS also has a complete audit trail and can track all changes made to the database.