Imagine you came home after work and have got a terrible stomach ache. What would you do then? Stay with the pain for the rest of the day? This could be a situation in the world without telemedicine apps. Thanks to these applications, one can schedule an appointment with doctors, have a consultation, and make payments for the service. Doxy.Me is a popular telemedicine app in the market. So, if you wish to develop an app like Doxy.Me then this is the article for you. Before digging into the details of the app development, let’s us first discuss the concept of telemedicine-

What is Telemedicine?

Telemedicine is the concept of leveraging communication channels for remote healthcare delivery. The term was used in Australia first (in 1990). It was when a doctor availed a two-way radio powered by a bicycle treadle for transmitting medical advertisements. But the communication channels are continually varying. Communication tools have become much smaller and more effective than those radio sets.

About Doxy.Me

Doxy.me is a free and secured telemedicine application that can quickly meet the demand of remote patients. It provides a convenient way for healthcare providers to offer their services worldwide. The software is easy to use and install, there are no particular downloads, and the patients don’t even have to create some accounts. The whole process is wholly automated, and so the practitioner can begin very quickly. The approach is very much suitable for handling urgent situations like the one we are facing- Coronavirus pandemic. 

Why do we need a Telemedicine app like Doxy. Me ?

Patient’s Perspective

As per a survey conducted in the 15 cities of the U.S, a patient has to wait for around 24 days to book the appointment with a doctor. For the very same reason, every one out of three patients chooses to go into the emergency department to avoid delays. This does cost a lot of inconvenience to physicians.

• 82% of the patients talk about investing in healthcare as the dire need.
• 69% of the patients prefer having a virtual appointment instead of visiting the doctor in-person.
• 77% of these patients wish to contact their healthcare professional via text messages.

Healthcare Professionals’ Perspective

There are several issues the doctors do face likely which a telemedicine app can quickly solve-

• The pressure of cost-cutting
• Regular Operation Maintenance
• Complying with regulations
• Time Mismanagement 
• Poor Work-life balance

Compiling, we can say that a telemedicine application is a big yes from both the doctor and the patient side. It is why the market of telemedicine apps is expected to hit 40 billion dollars by the year 2021. (Statista).

Features for Patients

1. Registration

Make sure you request the data that is needed for the application to operate. The longer the registration process is, the fewer people are going to go through it. Additionally, there are certain ways to increase the registrations- email Id, contact details, etc. But, in all this, we don’t recommend having social media registrations as a telemedicine app stores sensitive information.

2. Patients’ Profile

When designing the profile, you can ask for more information from users, but don’t overdo it. A personal profile includes all the medical information about the patient from providing them proper treatment.

3. Doctors’ Profile

A doctors’ profile is a must in a telemedicine app. These doctors are the ones who can provide remote services. The profile must have a photo, expertise, area, and the required credentials. The profile must also show the star ratings given by users.

4. Review and Rate

This feature allows the patients to rate the doctors as per their experience. The algorithm of the application would rate the high star rating doctors first.

5. Search & Sort

Usually, whenever users open any application, they are searching for something specific. The same holds in a telemedicine application. Using various filters, a user can easily look for the specialized doctor of the field.

6. Schedule Appointments

This feature is helpful in booking appointments with doctors and setting their schedules. When a patient has booked a slot, it should be shown to other users. Also, a telemedicine app like Doxy.Me must have an option of editing and canceling appointments.

7. Video/Text Chatting

It is one of the primary features in a telemedicine application that connects doctors and patients. Availing this, users can interact with their doctors using a video or messaging chat. The chatting feature must allow the addition of attaching media so that the users can easily share files with one another.

8. Payment Options

The app must integrate different payment gateways for convenient payments. It can include various debit, credit cards, internet banking, and other third party integrations

9. Push Notifications

Notifications are an easier way to send different reminders to users. Upcoming appointments, incoming messages, verifying transactions success or failure, or offers can be quickly sent through the notification panel.

10. GeoLocation

The geolocation is used for verifying the location of doctor and patients’ location. This widens the knowledge base of both parties about one another’s locality. This plays an important role as different states have different regulations.

11. In-app calls

In addition to text and video texts, the developer can implement phone call features in the application. At times, it proves to be a very convenient option for the users who wish to communicate through calls.

Features for Doctors

1. Registration

The doctors need to register first in the application through their mobile phone or email id for providing their services in the app. There should be some additional verification for creating their account, like scanning a doctors’ license. 

2. Profile

The doctor’s profile needs to have important information like expertise, education, credentials verification, and others.

3. Calendar

The feature will allow the doctors to mark their available hours for the consultation. The doctors can easily see when an appointment is taken and which time slot is empty. Also, when an appointment is scheduled, the doctor must have a feature to accept or reject it.

4. EHR Review

An EHR review will help the doctors to view the complete medical history of a patient before consultations. They can also add information about the patients’ health status. 

5. Record Sessions

For controlling the quality of services, doctors should be able to record both the audio and video sessions. This will keep both the doctors and patients on the same page and avoid disputes if any.

Use Cutting-edge Technologies

Telemedicine application can be a simple software that can connect patients and doctors, or it can be an advanced solution that integrates the complete business ecosystem. An effective telemedicine solution should optimize the doctor’s efficiency and provide qualitative services.

Most Telemedicine apps like Doxy.Me use advanced technologies like these-

1. Machine learning

It helps in deriving insights from huge amounts of data and hence assists the doctors in making accurate decisions regarding the patient’s health. 

2. Artificial Intelligence

AI-powered Chatbots, Voice recognition technology, and other such features aid the patients before they even consult a doctor. This technology optimizes the timing of doctors and provides instant help in the hour of need.

3. Blockchain

Blockchain helps in providing highly secure data transfer and storage. This technology plays a crucial role as the healthcare apps store a lot of sensitive data.

4. Big Data

Big data helps in gathering every minute detail about the patient’s health. It helps the doctor to directly dive into the context of the patient’s health history and make accurate decisions.

Coronavirus & Telemedicine 

With thousands of thousands of people quarantined and breaking the chain of Corona outbreak, it is the time for us even to avoid seeing doctors for run-of-the-mill sickness. This is where Telemedicine applications play a vital role. Availing these applications, people who are homebound can leverage the medical services from the comfort of their sofa. Powered-by AI, ML technologies the telemedicine can offer the next level services.

How can Matellio help?

Matellio, with its double-decade expertise, can assist in creating a telemedicine app like Doxy.Me. With the fast-paced technology, our developers are operating remotely and generating advanced medical solutions catering to the organizations’ requirements. So, you wish to offer medical services to remote patients? Matellio is here at your service and ready to play its role in serving mankind.

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