As a healthcare provider, you know that your available in-person appointment times may not always align with your patients’ needs. Patients may delay a visit to the doctor if they have to choose between getting care and attending to their responsibilities with work, errands, and family. They may also be worried about exposure to other sick patients.
This is where telemedicine comes in; by providing patients with the opportunity to receive medical care remotely and at their convenience, healthcare professionals reduce roadblocks for patients with restrictive schedules or responsibilities that could otherwise get in the way of receiving in-person medical care.
A patient can access telemedicine using their own device (e.g., phone, tablet, computer, etc.), often via a telemedicine app. While you can make use of third-party software, developing your own app allows you to build it to your exact needs, giving you control and ensuring your patients’ data stays secure.
If you’ve never built an app before, you likely have questions about the typical telemedicine app development cost. The total amount will depend on a number of factors. Read on to find out more.
What is a telemedicine app?
A telemedicine app is a mobile application that enables patients to receive medical care remotely. Most successful telemedicine apps make use of video conferencing technology, but they can also include features such as instant messaging, appointment scheduling, and medication management.
Telemedicine apps need to be easily accessible for both patients and providers, and this involves having different interfaces and capabilities for each group. You should also include distinct profiles for each patient and professional so you can set permissions on who can access what data and what they can do with it. For example, you’d want patients to be able to enter their date of birth and current medications, but you wouldn’t want them to edit the results of their blood work.
What types of telemedicine apps are there?
Telemedicine apps vary based on services provided, so depending on your practice and specialties, you may want to consider one type of telemedicine app over another. Here are a few types of telemedicine apps you could build:
Telemedicine networks
If your office is part of a network of providers, building a telemedicine network allows your patients to coordinate multiple aspects of their care within one platform. They can view appointment summaries, send messages to their providers, and schedule appointments without juggling multiple platforms, which also enables easier communication between their different providers and simplifies the referral process.
Real-time telemedicine
Depending on their medical needs and your office policies, patients may not need to visit your clinic in person to receive care. A telemedicine app allows patients and providers to meet over a phone or video call.
If you plan on offering real-time telehealth appointments, your telemedicine app should provide patients the option to choose between in-person and telehealth appointments when scheduling. You could also offer an on-demand service where they join a queue to meet with the next available provider. Regardless, always remember to include a disclaimer reminding patients that if they’re experiencing an emergency, they should call 911 or go to the nearest emergency room.
Virtual health assistants
Rather than offering direct healthcare, virtual health assistants help with the administrative tasks that come with patient care, and they can be automated without direct human input. Virtual health assistants can give or collect the proper information while freeing up doctors, nurses, and other providers to attend to tasks that can’t be automated. They can assist with the following:
- Symptom and recovery tracking: Virtual assistants can walk patients through the symptom and recovery tracking process, asking additional questions when appropriate and notifying providers when follow-up care is required. This is particularly helpful for patients with chronic conditions or those recovering from recent illnesses or procedures.
- Appointment scheduling: If given access to available dates and times, virtual care assistants can provide information about upcoming appointments and even book appointments on behalf of receptionists.
- Collecting patient history: In an in-person appointment, a nurse often collects patient histories, or the patient fills out a form. Virtual health assistants can ask questions on nurses’ or healthcare professionals’ behalf prior to both in-person and telemedicine appointments, saving both patients and providers time during actual appointments.
Telepsychiatry and other online mental health resources
Patients seeking psychiatry, therapy, or other mental healthcare can also benefit from telehealth services, particularly if they have recurring appointments on a weekly or biweekly basis.
Often, patients may seek a therapist who has something in common with them or similar attributes, so removing the geographic restrictions associated with in-person appointments opens up their options. Some patients prefer discussing their needs in a familiar space, and telemedicine allows them to get the help they need in the comfort of their own home.
Other types of telemedicine apps
The kinds of telemedicine apps you can develop are as diverse as the medical needs of your patients. In addition to the apps listed above, you may be interested in developing the following:
- Remote monitoring apps: For patients whose health conditions may fluctuate, such as those with diabetes or heart disease, remote monitoring can provide peace of mind that allows them to go about their daily activities without the risk of a surprise medical event. Remote monitoring apps are connected to a wearable device that can alert both the patient and their healthcare provider if there are any readings that may be causes for concern.
- Telepharmacy apps: For many patients, keeping up with their medications can be difficult, especially if they receive them through a specialty pharmacy or need frequent doctor approval to receive their prescriptions, which can be the case if they take a controlled substance. A telepharmacy app can help them request medication refills, keep track of the proper dosages, and ask their provider or pharmacist questions about their medications at their convenience.
Why should you build a telemedicine app?
There are a number of benefits to building a telemedicine app. First, it can greatly reduce wait times at your office, allowing your team to treat more patients in a given day. It can also reduce exposing patients who are well to other patients with communicable illnesses or diseases.
Second, not all patients have acute needs that require an in-person visit. Some will simply need to discuss their medication options or ask questions about how to care for themselves or others, and the convenience of telehealth can save them the time, money, and energy that coming into your office would have required.
Finally, depending on where your office is located, it’s possible that people in surrounding areas have to travel lengthy distances to receive care, particularly if they live in a rural location with less access to specialists. Telemedicine allows them to receive the care they need without coordinating when and how they can accommodate a trip to your office.
How much does it cost to build a telemedicine app?
Building a telemedicine app from scratch can be quite expensive, depending on the hourly rates of the developer you hire as well as how long it takes. Though the different types of apps outlined above will require different coding needs, you can expect your total telemedicine app development cost to be anywhere between $40,000 and $150,000 or more.
Factors influencing telemedicine app development cost
To ensure you provide the right care to the right patients, they’ll need to register for an account on your platform. Storing each patient’s information can be an ongoing expense that may increase as more patients join. For patient convenience, it’s also wise to include a built-in or integrated way for patients to make payments and view billing statements. Each of these features can influence your telemedicine app development cost.
Within the platform itself, the features you opt for will also have associated costs. Keeping a synchronized calendar of available appointments, enabling direct messaging with providers, and supporting virtual meetings will all require more work for your developer. If you plan to offer virtual meetings over video or voice calls, there will be extra costs whether you choose to integrate with third-party videoconferencing programs or have one built into your platform.
The platform you build must also include features that enable Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) compliance to ensure the safety of your patients’ sensitive medical information. A HIPAA violation can be catastrophic to your practice (not to mention your patients), so even though the up-front cost of building a secure enough platform may be high, this particular detail is essential.
Keep in mind that even once your app launches, there will be costs associated with maintaining and updating it. The amount can vary, but you should expect to pay 15–20 percent of the total cost toward upkeep on a routine basis.
Your total telemedicine app development cost can be hefty — unless you use a platform like Jotform Apps.
Is there an easier way to build a telemedicine app?
Jotform Apps is a free service that enables you to build apps without any coding knowledge. Using its intuitive drag-and-drop builder, you can include all the features and elements you need to build a telemedicine app that helps you provide the best care for your patients.
Jotform Apps also offers a number of integrations, including 40 for payment processing. And with more than 700 templates, including ones specifically designed for telehealth services and appointment scheduling, as well as extensive customization options that build brand awareness and trust, it’s both quick and easy to get your app up and running.
Another benefit of using Jotform for your telemedicine app is that their Gold and Enterprise plans include HIPAA compliance features, giving you and your patients the peace of mind in knowing all their information is secure.
When you’re ready to put your app to use, Jotform features a number of secure sharing options and permissions controls that ensure safe and easy access for both patients and providers.
Using Jotform Apps greatly decreases typical telemedicine app development costs without compromising the benefits of providing telemedicine options for your patients.
Photo by Tima Miroshnichenko
Send Comment: