Pairing with a caregiver

Pair DoseAlert on your phone with DoseAlert on a family member's phone to share selected dose status and overdue-dose alerts.

What pairing does

Pairing creates a private link between two phones. After pairing:

• The caregiver dashboard can show shared dose status and recent paired history.
• When the patient app opens or resumes online, it checks configured overdue doses and can send an alert.
• The caregiver can acknowledge the alert so you know they've seen it.
• If proof is required, one end-to-end encrypted photo package can be delivered automatically.

What you need

• DoseAlert installed on both phones.
• An active internet connection on both phones for pairing and ongoing caregiver delivery.
• Notifications enabled on both phones.

Pairing, step by step

On the patient's phone (the person whose doses are tracked)

1. Open DoseAlert and tap the Family tab.
2. Tap Pair a caregiver.
3. Enter your name (so the caregiver knows who they're paired with).
4. Tap Generate code. A six-digit code appears.
5. Leave the screen open — the code is valid for 10 minutes.

On the caregiver's phone

1. Open DoseAlert and tap the Family tab.
2. Tap Pair with patient.
3. Enter your name.
4. Type the six-digit code the patient shared.
5. Tap Connect.

Both phones confirm the pairing is complete. On the patient's phone, the caregiver's name appears in the Family tab with a status indicator.

Setting when alerts fire

Pairing alone doesn't send any alerts. You choose which medications should trigger a caregiver alert and how long to wait.

1. On the patient's phone, open the medication.
2. Scroll to Reminders.
3. Set Alert caregiver after to a number of minutes (e.g. 30 minutes past the scheduled time).
4. Save.

See Missed-dose alerts for timing recommendations and what the caregiver sees.

Multiple caregivers

You can pair multiple caregivers to the same profile — for example, both of an elderly parent's adult children. Every caregiver receives the same alerts independently.

Unpairing

On either phone, open the Family tab, tap the caregiver's name, and tap Unpair. The pairing is removed immediately on both phones. No further alerts are sent.

Testing the pairing

Once paired, tap the Send test alert button on the caregiver entry. The caregiver's phone receives a "Test alert" notification within a few seconds. If they don't receive it, see Caregiver is not getting alerts.

SMS fallback

If push delivery fails and a phone number is available, DoseAlert can open a pre-filled SMS in the patient's messaging app. The patient must review and send it; DoseAlert cannot send a text silently. Normal text charges may apply.

What data is shared

Caregiver alerts include patient name, medication name, dosage, and scheduled time. The caregiver dashboard can also show paired dose tracker history and whether proof exists. Proof-photo packages are end-to-end encrypted; ordinary alert details and shared dose status are protected in transit and by Firebase access rules, but are not described as end-to-end encrypted. Your full local medication list, personal settings, and inventory are not uploaded as a cloud backup. Encrypted photo packages are deleted after import or within 24 hours. See Privacy and data for the full picture.