A system for alerting healthcare practitioners comprising: a plurality of receiving devices, each receiving device being associated with a corresponding healthcare practitioner and including: a user alerting device adapted to alert the practitioner to a received message with one of a plurality of types of alerts; a receiver adapted to receive the incoming messages; and circuitry adapted to cause the user alerting device to alert the practitioner to an incoming message with one of the plurality of types of alerts; and a sending station adapted to send the messages carrying healthcare information of one of a plurality of preselected types of healthcare significances to a selected one or more of the receiving devices, each message corresponding to a selected one of the types of alerts, such that the receiving device alerts the practitioner to receive the message with the selected type of alerts, characterised in that the sending station includes: a plurality of sending station identifiers, each identifier corresponding to one of the types of alerts, the sending station being adapted to send the message with one of the sending station identifiers corresponding to a selected alert such that the alerting device responds to the sending station identifier with the selected alert, or in that at least one of the receiving device includes: a plurality of receiving station identifiers, each identifier corresponding to one of the types of alerts, the sending station being adapted to send the message to a receiving station identifier corresponding to a selected alert such that the alerting device responds to the receiving station identifier with the selected alert. a plurality of receiving devices, each receiving device being associated with a corresponding healthcare practitioner and including: a user alerting device adapted to alert the practitioner to a received message with one of a plurality of types of alerts; a receiver adapted to receive the incoming messages; and circuitry adapted to cause the user alerting device to alert the practitioner to an incoming message with one of the plurality of types of alerts; and a user alerting device adapted to alert the practitioner to a received message with one of a plurality of types of alerts; a receiver adapted to receive the incoming messages; and circuitry adapted to cause the user alerting device to alert the practitioner to an incoming message with one of the plurality of types of alerts; and a sending station adapted to send the messages carrying healthcare information of one of a plurality of preselected types of healthcare significances to a selected one or more of the receiving devices, each message corresponding to a selected one of the types of alerts, such that the receiving device alerts the practitioner to receive the message with the selected type of alerts, characterised in that the sending station includes: a plurality of sending station identifiers, each identifier corresponding to one of the types of alerts, the sending station being adapted to send the message with one of the sending station identifiers corresponding to a selected alert such that the alerting device responds to the sending station identifier with the selected alert, or in that at least one of the receiving device includes: a plurality of receiving station identifiers, each identifier corresponding to one of the types of alerts, the sending station being adapted to send the message to a receiving station identifier corresponding to a selected alert such that the alerting device responds to the receiving station identifier with the selected alert. a plurality of sending station identifiers, each identifier corresponding to one of the types of alerts, the sending station being adapted to send the message with one of the sending station identifiers corresponding to a selected alert such that the alerting device responds to the sending station identifier with the selected alert, or in that at least one of the receiving device includes: a plurality of receiving station identifiers, each identifier corresponding to one of the types of alerts, the sending station being adapted to send the message to a receiving station identifier corresponding to a selected alert such that the alerting device responds to the receiving station identifier with the selected alert.