Insider Intelligence reports that 63.4% of adults in the US were using an application for a health-related issue over the course of the past year. The survey they conducted took place at the end of 2022. That is a massive turn from 2015 when it was a struggle all around. Back then, it was reported by Accenture that major US hospitals were struggling to engage their patients to use mobile health apps provided by the medical facilities. Only 2 percent of patients were using those hospital-provided apps.
While these are not the most correlating stats out there, they clearly show that the interest in health apps increased over the years, and it’s vital for healthcare organizations to work hard on players’ engagement. Accenture highlighted the fact that about 7% of patients were inclined and eventually changed their healthcare providers due to a bad experience with online customer service channels from their initial provider.
How much is it in lost revenue? Around $100 million per hospital, according to Accenture. That shows the importance of an effective online presence for healthcare businesses. Customer-facing mobile apps might be the deciding factor in making it in the competitive world of healthcare business.
In this blog post, we’ll have a look at the biggest and the most successful healthcare apps for patients, highlight their core features, and try to dig to the bottom often question how you’d make your application look appealing for the end-user/patient.
What is a Customer-Facing Healthcare App and Its Benefits
By saying healthcare customer-facing app, we mean quite a broad range of software products. It includes both health and wellness apps, but those two are not the same.
According to the American FDA, a “health app” is one that can diagnose, track, or help with the treatment of the disease. At the same time “wellness app” is the software that addresses mental, social, physical, or spiritual factors that are related to a person’s health.
When we refer to “customer-facing app”, we mean software, or technology that includes a user interface (UI) that communicates directly with customers, or patients.
People are using healthcare apps to get advice regarding their health, get a video call exam, or keep track of their overall well-being. They have the luxury of choice these days.
During the pandemic, 90,000+ health apps were released in app stores worldwide. That is 250 applications per day. That is around 250 health apps per day. COVID-19 served well to the popularisation of remote care as in-person physician visits weren’t always possible. Almost a third of respondents to Insider Intelligence’s survey admitted that their usage of medical apps increased at that time.
At the same time, fitness apps were ranked with the highest use rates. Respondents believe they have a great impact on their physical health. Mental health apps also are somewhat popular, but the app must have a unique value.
More on what customers are expecting from their health app in the next chapter.
Customers Want The Following From A Healthcare App
In the ever-evolving landscape of healthcare technology, patients have high hopes for mobile healthcare apps. The digital tool they’re facing has to enhance the quality of care, and most apps fail to meet the high expectations of end-users. Brian Kalis, a seasoned expert in Accenture’s Health practice, emphasizes that merely having a mobile app in the healthcare domain is not enough. Patients want seamless access to products and services as part of their wholesome customer experience. Any dissatisfaction with a provider’s mobile offerings could prompt patients to seek alternatives.
The market for mobile medical apps is valued at US$6.6 Billion. At the same time, app data reveals a certain trend: most healthcare apps struggle to surpass the 10,000 downloads mark. Those that do surpass this milestone, possess a certain feature set which we’ll observe below.
Functionality: The Simpler, The Better
In the world of apps, complexity is the enemy of user retention. Patients expect an easy and fast sign-in process and easy-to-navigate features. While uniqueness is laudable, essential functions should be readily accessible.
Whether it’s a health or wellness app, patients strive for streamlined processes, be it booking, rescheduling, or canceling appointments. Moreover, wellness apps should empower users to efficiently track and share information with health practitioners. A universal experience across Android and iPhone platforms is the default these days. An example of a highly functional app is Flo, perhaps the most famous and convenient ovulation and period tracker in the world. It’s at the Top-5 of the most downloadable health apps in the world.
Accessibility
A healthcare app should offer clear, actionable information for all users, including the ones with disabilities. Robust interactive tools should engage patients and make them feel valued, ensuring they receive personalized care. A wonderful example of such an app is Be My Eyes. Be My Eyes is an app designed to aid visually impaired people. The application connects those with sight disabilities with online sighted volunteers so that former ones could get help with their everyday tasks from the latter.
Seamless Communication with Healthcare Professionals
Recent studies suggest that a significant portion of healthcare visits can be efficiently handled through phone or video consultations. In-person visits, often time-consuming, may not be necessary for basic, impromptu check-ins. Healthcare apps have the potential to save both patients and practitioners precious time. Telehealth services must aim to match or exceed the quality of traditional in-person interactions. TelaDoc is a great example of a successful telehealth app that allows users to get qualified help 24/7.
The Power of Community
Healthcare apps with social features can bolster patient commitment to treatment plans and healthier lifestyles. Online communities serve as platforms for individuals to connect with others facing similar challenges.
Fostering a positive and supportive community within the app can yield substantial returns, offering inspiration and strength to those grappling with medical diagnoses. 4,000,000 volunteers are using the aforementioned application “Be My Eyes”.
Examples of Extremely Succesful Health and Fitness Apps Among Customers
Source: insiderintelligence.com
As you can see from the image above, most of the top-10 downloadable apps are fitness applications. Calm is a mental health app, Yuka is for diets, and Flo helps with women’s health. These apps are helpful to their users and have certain advantages over competitors, including bringing benefits mentioned above.
We’d like to highlight a couple of more applications that are functional, and accessible, allow seamless communication with the doctors, and have a strong community around them.
Teladoc – Round-the-Clock Doctor Access
Teladoc seamlessly links patients with board-certified physicians 24/7, all from the convenience of their phones or video calls. This app serves as a swift and efficient channel for patients to engage with attentive doctors who stand ready to address their concerns.
In cases where medical intervention is necessary, doctors can promptly prescribe medication and facilitate connections with the patient’s preferred pharmacy. Teladoc’s integration with Apple HealthKit elevates the user experience, allowing healthcare providers to craft more precise diagnoses by accessing the patient’s up-to-date medical information.
With a remarkable 4.8-star rating from over 227,000 users, Teladoc garners praise for its user-friendly interface and unbeatable convenience, making it a favorite among patients seeking immediate medical assistance.
Better Help – Accessible Online Counseling
Better Help is pioneering the way in online counseling, providing patients with a quick, cost-effective, and accessible gateway to mental health professionals. This mobile healthcare app offers a convenient avenue for individuals to access licensed therapists and counselors via the Internet.
With an impressive tally of over 14,000 positive reviews, Better Help shines as a beacon of personalized, confidential care, delivered through video chats and messaging. These reviews underscore the satisfaction of patients who find greater contentment in their online therapy sessions compared to traditional in-person counseling experiences. Online counseling, through Better Help, nurtures a secure haven for everyone.
The app boasts a roster of over 3,000 well-trained, experienced, and accredited counselors, each specializing in a diverse array of areas, ranging from managing depression and anxiety to navigating family and couples therapy. Better Help excels in tailoring the experience, expertly matching patients with the counselors best suited to their unique needs. Additionally, the app offers group webinars, fostering a sense of community and support among its users.
Our Custom-Built Workout App
Elinext is also no stranger to delivering top-notch fitness apps. Our Australian client whom we helped with a web portal for fitness instructors came back to cooperate with us. This time they requested a mobile app which is a remote workout solution for their clients. In the next chapter, we’re going to discuss how we helped our client with our custom solution.
Step-by-step Instruction For Building A Well-Demanded Healthcare App
Step 1. Define The Purpose of Your App and It’s Target Audience
It is vital to understand what your target audience needs, In the case of our Australian client, they needed an app for remote practice, where their users will have their exercise program, can track the progress, send videos to the instructors as well as PDF-file exchanger for signing some contracts.
Our customer knew all about their target audience and what gaps they needed to close with the help of this app. They also had enough in-house instructors in the area willing to expand their services to remote opportunities.
Step 2. Plan What Features Should App Possess
We briefly mentioned what features our client needed and executed them accordingly. it included a program section (for workout program plans), a progress section, a video exchange, a PDF editor, and other functions.
Step 3. Choose the Right Technology Stack
Our client needed both Android and iOS applications. With our capacity, and their willingness to have a cross-platform framework, we concluded, that Flutter will be our choice.
Step 4. Create an Outstanding UI/UX Design
Without a visually appealing and easy-to-use interface, an app won’t be successful. Accessibility and inclusivity are a must!
Step 5. Hire a Team of Developers
You already have an idea of where to find a team that can help you with software development. You’re reading the blog of the company that does just that.
Step 6. Develop an MVP version of the app
Create the most basic and cheapest version of your health, or fitness app, focusing on core features and functionality. This step includes all the stages of software development. The MVP version will allow you to test the concept of the app, and after gathering the feedback, you’ll have an idea of things you’ve done right and wrong around the app.
Step 7. Expand the MVP Version
Based on the user’s feedback, you can add certain features that are
Step 8. Release the App
Release your app on the appropriate platforms. Hire an ASO specialist to promote it in the right ways on the most popular platforms (Google Play Store, Apple App Store). In our case that was an application that simplifies the workout for users at home. It is the property of our customers and helps them in running their fitness business online and offline.
Conclusion
Mobile healthcare app development is the area healthcare providers need to explore to satisfy the needs of their patients and stay relevant in a highly competitive field. Usually, the strategy is partnering up with an experienced software development team to build a high-quality app that finds positive responses in the hearts of patients and helps build relationships with customers that positively affect future revenue. Elinext thrives as a software development company that helps businesses by delivering top-notch customer-facing healthcare apps. If you’re reading this article, there’s a decent chance you’re interested in building an app. Contact us to get the details on the pricing of the future project.
