01/02/2021
How mobile apps can revitalize the patient experience
By: Omar Abdul-Hafiz
In a previous article, we discussed the merits of web portals in the healthcare sector in some detail. We concluded that web portals may offer a great way to streamline the routine of time-consuming paperwork in a digitalized and automated manner. This will save much valuable time that can instead be dedicated to actually delivering the healthcare service patients are seeking.
But whereas web portals do their magic through web browsers, there’s another powerful element that does its magic through the smartphone. That’s right! We’re talking about the mobile app.
In this article, we will look at several ways healthcare mobile apps can play a vital role in speeding up the healthcare process, thus making it more comfortable and convenient for your patients.
In a few short bullet points, the impact of mobile apps in healthcare can be summed up as follows:
- Enhanced patient-doctor communication.
- Increased patient engagement.
- Ubiquitous access to healthcare services.
- More efficient handling of time-sensitive medical cases.
To look at these points in practice, here are a few interesting examples.
e-Prescriptions
It often happens that a patient is in urgent need for a prescription from their medical provider. The patient would call the medical provider only to find that they are busy or cannot be available to tend to their request at that time. The result would be a patient in distress, waiting for their prescription as precious time is wasted that could be critical to their health.
Through a patient mobile app equipped with the e-prescriptions feature, however, this problem can be easily prevented. The doctor may instantly receive the patient’s prescription request and respond to it in a point-and-click simplicity.
Instant access to information
Since smartphones have become a significant part of our daily lives, this allows them to be quite helpful in giving patients instant access to their medical information. They may be able to access specific details about their medical prescriptions, laboratory results, radiological images, and more.
Giving your patients such convenient access to their medical information helps keep them self-aware of their medical needs, thus improving their medication adherence. Furthermore, it also helps make remote patient monitoring possible and easy to implement.
Book and track appointments with ease
Thanks to patient apps, your patients may easily book and keep track of their doctor appointments from the comfort of their smartphones. These apps may also alert them when their appointment is due or notify them of any changes in its time and date. This helps in giving patients easier communication with their medical facility and may also improve their punctual attendance.
Keeping your patients educated
Despite all the perks and merits of the Worldwide Web, its one major drawback is the tricky access to credible facts and information. And this problem is seen most clearly with regards to healthcare. Interestingly enough, however, your patients do not have to struggle with this anymore.
Through the convenience of a patient mobile-app, healthcare providers can provide patients with credible, personalized educational materials about the nature of their medical condition and how to best cope with it. This way, you can make sure that they have enough information to keep them away from untrusted or incomplete facts that do not apply to their specific situation.
What’s next?
Mobile apps have proven to be a great way of making our lives much easier by letting us carry out all our daily tasks through the comfort of our phones. As such, we can safely expect mobile apps to be taking a bigger, more vital role in the healthcare world. Imagine, for instance, the amount of time it would save your patients. Through their smartphones, they may be able to check out all the information related to their medical prescription, lab results, or their next appointment to name a few.
Therefore, a state-of-the-art medical service would not be complete without the magic power of these little, handy gadgets.
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