Telehealth Is the Future
You can order groceries for delivery from the comfort of your own home, schedule gym classes from an app, and now get diagnosed and pickup you prescription without ever stepping into a doctor’s office – regardless of health insurance.
The big players in telehealth, Teledoc and American Well, have been providing patients with telehealth services (via phone and video chat) for over a decade, through employers or healthcare organizations. Recently, a new breed of telehealth startups have cropped up, going straight to consumers with modern interfaces, same day consultations, and fast e-prescription turn around times.
Doctor On Demand is providing a cost effective way ($40/video visit) to see a doctor for aliments like the cold, skin rashes, eye conditions, sore throat and more. The service also has pediatricians and psychologists on staff and expanded to include lactation consultants this year. PlushCare has a longer list of ailments their urgent care doctors can generally treat, with competitive pricing as well as a giving back program to the underserved. Pager is providing doctor house call visits so patients can still interact with a certified physician, but from the comfort of their own home.
In dermatology, companies like YoDerm and Klara ask patients to upload photos so their doctors can assess the condition and prescribe medication accordingly, while PocketDerm sends patients their own custom formula. In parallel, First Derm focuses more on anonymous dermatology triage, answering easy questions for patients who have acne and blemishes, and sending the patients with potentially more complex cases to real doctors.
And of course, to manage the ever complex healthcare system, services like Better equip users with their own Personal Health Assistants, who help figure out health insurance bills, find and schedule doctor appointments, and even check in with wellness tips.
Through interviews and trials, we see healthcare changing and adapting to technology, and giving patients what they want.
