Thanks to two new websites and the readily available technology we are all using everyday, you can have one. In fact, your customers can now have a doctor in their lounge room, their office, or out and about on the go by visiting Doctors on Demand and QuickScript.
The rapidly evolving technology industry and improved access to internet services is producing a shift in the traditional doctor/patient relationship. Busy (time-poor) professionals, working families and longer working lives are making it harder and harder for the general population to consult with their doctor.
The eHealth revolution is transforming modern medical services into convenience based, consumer driven models. Patients can now function more like a consumer, with the ability to choose when and how they communicate with their GP.
Doctors on Demand is a new website that enables users to book a video conference (or, ‘Telehealth”) appointment with a GP. They also have the option of booking a physical appointment online with participating medical practices.
Doctors use two main skills to diagnose most common medical conditions: looking and listening. Whilst video-conferencing can never completely replace the need for face-to-face consultations, in many circumstances it is an acceptable substitute that provides convenient and accessible health care delivery without compromising patient safety.
All the patient requires to access our service is a webcam enabled computer, tablet or mobile phone. Users pay $50 for a 15-minute consultation, which is almost equivalent to the out of pocket expense incurred by a general patient consulting with an “in rooms” doctor without the need for spending time parking and sitting in a waiting room.
The developers created the site after witnessing the difficulty rural and remote patients have in accessing primary healthcare services. Their goal is to make health care more accessible and provide the ultimate patient experience by using technology to remove some of the traditional barriers that separate patients from doctors.
Need an Owing Rx Solution?
QuickScript is a convenient service that allows users to request a repeat prescription for their regular ongoing medication by simply completing an online questionnaire. The system is engineered to be inclusive of all doctors and all pharmacies so that patients can register their regular doctor and preferred pharmacy details.
Pharmacist’s who make their patients aware of this service on the dispensing of their last repeat have a unique opportunity to facilitate continuity of supply. Most literature suggests approximately 50% of patients do not take their medications as prescribed. Whilst this is a multi-factorial situation, a major contributing factor is patient access to physicians. The World Health Organization (WHO) has declared “increasing the effectiveness of adherence interventions may have a far greater impact on the health of the population than any improvement in specific medical treatments.”
QuickScript is a “Win-Win-Win” Service
Benefits to Patients
- Patients have a platform to request a new prescription for an ongoing medicine without having to physically see the doctor;
- Convenient and time saving for those that find it difficult to make it to the doctor or doctor is unavailable when they are; and
- Improved health outcomes. Not missing doses or going without medicine (e.g. asthma preventers) because of difficulty making time for an appointment.
- Helps retain loyalty by providing an efficient way for your customer to easily maintain ongoing supply of their regular medications with the prescription guaranteed to come back to your pharmacy.
- A convenient service you can refer your customers to when they have had their last repeat dispensed; are requesting an owing script; or presenting with an expired script;
- Rather than the Pharmacist trying to provide an unpaid service at an inconvenient time by requesting (interrupting) the patient’s regular GP to provide an owing script (without a consult or payment) and then usually have to chase up the hard copy, with a grumpy time-poor unpaid doctor.
Benefits to Doctors
- Gives them an opportunity to monetise a service that currently operates as a ‘grey area’ in most practices (repeat Rx requests for general patients)
- The Doctor gets to action the request at a convenient time to them and free up space in their appointment book to see more physical patients. Great for busy doctors and those that are commercially minded, looking for increased income; and
- They don’t need to take phone calls from the pesky Pharmacist next door while they are in the middle of a consultation with someone else to do an owing Rx for one of their regular patient’s ongoing medication (for FREE!).
Contact us today to find out more about how your pharmacy can be involved in offering this great service to both your customers and local doctors. Become a registered outlet on our site and drive new customers into your pharmacy.