PocketDerm: Interview with the Founders
The tagline for PocketDerm – ‘see a dermatologist online and get a prescription medication at your door’ – sounds too good to be true for many curious people who find the service. And especially after seeing all the positive results and tweets from happy users, I’m surprised at how cost effective it is at $19.95/month. Membership includes doctor consultations, messaging, and shipments of the personalized prescription acne medication. This idea of combining a personalized tele-derm consultation with a custom cleaning formula was created by Dr. David Lortscher and Dr. Nancy Satur. We reached out to them to learn more about PocketDerm.
B: Tell us how the Company started.
Nancy: Many patients are busy with work, school, sports and other time commitments, making it very difficult to fit in a visit to a dermatologist in-person. David had practiced in an area where access was a big problem. His schedule was filled to the overflowing, some patients were driving over 100 miles to get to the office, and it could be a 2 to 3 month wait for an appointment.
And we know that even after acne patients do manage to be seen by their local dermatologist—with or without insurance— a number of them cannot afford the medications they have been prescribed! (Brand-name tubes of acne medications can cost hundreds of dollars at the pharmacy.) Time, availability, distance, and affordability all can be obstacles to care for some. With PocketDerm, we can overcome some of these hurdles.
David: Many people with acne don’t have success with over-the-counter treatments like Proactiv. In my practice I noticed that many people are forced to just “live with” their acne, because it’s difficult to get in to see a dermatologist.
B: Unlike other telemedicine apps that treat acne with standard drugs, PocketDerm sends a customized prescription formula to its users - this seems pretty revolutionary compared to Proactiv. Is this why the business and your patients are so successful?
David: Absolutely, the biggest reason that PocketDerm patients see such good results is that they receive a medication that’s actually prescription and that’s customized by the dermatologist who looks at their photos.
Nancy: And, one that is quite affordable!
B: Which states are you live with?
David: We’re active in 38 states right now, with a couple more to follow soon hopefully.
Nancy: The application process can be lengthy and time-consuming—we are working hard to expand!
B: At your price point and with a money-back guarantee, trying PocketDerm sounds like a no-brainer. What are some of the questions/barriers patients have to trying a telemedicine option?
Nancy: The concept is so new—some patients wonder if we're "for real." We find that when patients hear about us from someone they trust, whether from a friend or relative known to them personally, or via some type of online community where there is a level of comfort and familiarity, the barriers disappear.
David: Some patients like the idea of a dermatologist prescribing them a medication based on their medical history and photos, whereas there will always be other people who prefer seeing a dermatologist face-to-face.
