The first mobile health applications were extensions of lifestyle apps. Consumers could use them for counting calories, keeping track of diet and fitness routines or even for help with quitting smoking. However, with smart phone usage gaining popularity the number of possibilities has increased tremendously. From tracking prescription refills and drug dosage reminders to monitoring patients’ recovery at home, health apps are now acting as an extension of telemedicine where the patients can get medical advice using their phone. Gartner has named mobile health applications as one of the top ten consumer applications of 2012. There is also a host of medical apps that are targeted at doctors and physicians. All this is setting a new trend in healthcare that empowers both patients and doctors.

1. Constant communication with doctors

Apps such as Facetime and Skype are already being used to communicate with people from across the world. Now By Mediczy, a patient could contact his doctor from anywhere in the world for advice or diagnosis, by uploading a screenshot of a lesion or for relaying symptoms of an ailment. This would do away with the need for appointments and long waits in clinics. Of course, before this happens, suitable mechanisms have to be put in place so that doctors get paid for every consultation. Mediczy, which recently launched a new suite of applications for  Android devices, allows users to get medical questions answered by a network of 100 licensed doctors in the India. Plans are on the way to introduce in the near future a paid service that permits online consultations.

2. Easy access to data

With the trend towards electronic medical records (EMR), doctors can easily access patient data and reduce wait times as there is no need to search and locate a patient’s file physically. This could not only help save lives in cases of emergency, where every second counts, but also help for more routine requirements such as getting prescription refills. For doctors, apps could do away with the need for medical reference books. For instance, Mediczy, an app that provides doctors an easy mobile source of reference for information related to drugs, diseases and other information, can help to access medical information when away from the clinic.

In modern times we have become so busy that we often ignore the most important tasks of life, healthcare being one of them. Hectic schedule, busy traffic, transportation cost coupled with expensive medical care keeps us away from a doctor, until it is something serious. What if the doctor, diagnostics and medicines were delivered at your doorsteps?

A one-of-its-kind app, Mediczy connects doctors with patients on the go to provide efficient and convenient medical care.

What it solves

Often termed as skype for patients and doctors, it solves four main problems that are preventing patients from consulting a doctor physically.

To start with, our fast and hectic life has pushed healthcare to the back burner. People are too busy to go down to a specialist. They often self-medicate or just let it be, which should not be the case. Research shows that 72 per cent of health issues are common illnesses and do not need physical examination. Hence, people can rely on the app as an alternative form.

This also comes to the rescue of people looking for privacy for sensitive issues related to psychology, spousal relationships etc. A large number of women too seem to have been key takers for consultations regarding menstruation problems, pregnancy planning or infertility consultation, pregnancy and post pregnancy care and lactation consultation.

One of the major problems that are crippling the healthcare system is the cost incurred to see a doctor. Most hospitals charge a hefty amount as the registration fees of which about 50 percent of the money is infrastructure cost.

To add to all these, our present healthcare system is not accessible for majority of the population. 97 per cent of the specialists are situated in the top 10 cities. Hence, those from smaller towns and cities do not have access to affordable healthcare. At present there is 1 doctor for 1700 people and the gap is going to grow, as per WHO statistics.

Mediczy is the one click solution to all the problems that create a gap between availability and accessibility of medical services in the country by connecting the patient with the concerned specialists within 30 minutes.

Some numbers

The app offers its users a strong network of eminent doctors across seven departments. Good No of patients consulted doctors via Mediczy across India in a short span of 3 months

Network of 100 top doctors across 3 cities - Bangalore, Mumbai and Chennai.

"We plan to reach 10 cities in the coming 6 months," added Suresh CEO.

They also plan to start delivering medicine at doorstep soon.

Suresh accepted that the doctors on the platform are not very large in number.

"We take full responsibility of the quality of the consultation and service provided to the patients. Hence we curate each and every doctor before registering him/her on the platform."