Healthcare Mobile App Development: Solutions For Failing Hospital Apps

Healthcare Mobile App Development has seen a sudden spurt in growth over the last decade. Many hospitals are developing apps as an endeavor to improve for their patients. Unfortunately many apps have not delivered the expected results.

Healthcare Mobile App Development is a necessity and has a huge impact on the medical sector. Many hospitals have recognized the scope of possibilities that apps can provide. Some hospitals have made an effort to upgrade their patients care services with the help of an app.

Even though Healthcare Mobile App Development has been on the rise, the healthcare app usage has not progressed as expected. What is the reason behind the failure of these apps?

Functions of a Healthcare Mobile App?

Healthcare mobile app development is based on the requirement of the hospital or the medical company. A healthcare mobile app performs several functions such as:

• Emergency notification: One of the main functions is to provide a communication link between a medical service provider and a patient. In case of an emergency the patient should be able to notify medical services with the press of an SOS button on the app. This feature is incorporated at the healthcare mobile app development stage. A large number of people live alone and should be able to easily contact their doctor or hospital in case of an emergency.

• Medical history: A healthcare mobile app provides a patient with a complete history of their medical record. Patients feel a need to have access to their medical history. Medical records consist of data such as past illnesses, allergies, record of hospitalization, type of treatment they received, name of the doctor they were treated by, diagnosis etc.

• Health monitoring devices: With technological advances, medical implants or health monitoring devices worn by patients can be linked to their smart phone using Bluetooth. The information recorded is communicated directly to the hospital through the healthcare mobile app. Healthcare mobile app development takes into consideration various heath monitoring devices and makes provision to communicate this data. Whether it is blood pressure levels, or blood sugar levels or heart rate, the app communicates the data to the hospital. In case of any irregularity the hospital can send help immediately.

• Disease specific apps: Healthcare mobile app development also targets specific diseases. Obesity, diabetes, heart conditions, and mental health, are areas where there is high demand for healthcare mobile apps.

• Prescription reminder: One of the key features which should be included in healthcare mobile app development is a prescription reminder. People on regular medication need a prescription repository. The healthcare mobile app not only reminds a patient when they need to refill, but also provides a list of pharmacies nearby.

• Appointment scheduling: An essential function of a healthcare mobile app is to help a patient get an appointment with the doctor. It also enables the patient to cancel or reschedule the appointment if required.

Most hospitals are keen that patients use their hospital app to avail of better customer service facilities. But the response has not been as overwhelming as expected. There is a lot of scope for improvement for the healthcare mobile app development arena.

Why are hospital apps failing?

If healthcare mobile apps are so great and useful why are they failing? Unfortunately, the failure of most healthcare apps can be attributed to the Healthcare Mobile App Development. Who’s developing your app? Do the developers understand the implications of making an app that doesn’t meet the expected criteria? It is not possible to develop a healthcare mobile app without completely understanding the requirement. A thorough understanding of the client’s needs is required.

In a research conducted by Accenture in 2016 many causes for failure of healthcare mobile apps were identified. One of the main reasons for failure of healthcare apps in the US is because of in-house healthcare mobile app development. Many top hospitals in the US chose to develop their own app rather than hiring professional healthcare mobile app development services.

Even though this report was published by Accenture 2 years ago, not much has changed since then. The Accenture report also stated that many patients did not use the healthcare mobile app provided by their hospital as it lacked useful features.

How can we resolve this and make the healthcare mobile apps more useful? A healthcare mobile app can be very useful and beneficial for both hospitals and their patients.

BluEnt explores possible Healthcare solutions for Application Development.

Healthcare Mobile App Development Solutions For Failing Hospital Apps

What benefits does a patient derive by using the healthcare mobile app? Many large hospitals have developed apps, but very few of their patients actually use them.

There are a few key features which can be incorporated into a healthcare mobile app to address the current issues. The main solution for successful healthcare mobile app development is to understand the basic requirement of the app user and design it accordingly.

Patient-centric apps: Healthcare Mobile App Development is all about keeping the user in focus. When developing an app, the hospital has to ensure that it enables the patient to communicate with the hospitals at all levels. Whether it is making an appointment, rescheduling or cancelling an appointment, the patient should be able to easily do it.

Learn more about Web App Development Services .

Essential features that should be included in healthcare mobile app development are:

• User friendly application

• Customizable according to the patient’s requirement

• Easy to operate

• Prescription reminders

• Easy prescription reordering

• Appointment making facility

A healthcare app should also be educational. A user should be able to get basic information about symptoms and diagnosis through the healthcare mobile app. This enables them to carry out precautionary measures till help arrives. Such a feature can help save a life.

A healthcare mobile app that comprises useful features encourages use of the app. Many patients do not use their healthcare app assigned by the hospital as they do not find it useful. Simple functions such as checking their prescription or ordering their medicines, is a big deal to patients, especially the senior citizens. Many of the current healthcare mobile apps have not paid heed to the patient’s requirement thereby leading to failure of the app.

Conclusion

Healthcare mobile app development needs professional expertise. Our experienced team at BluEnt can design an app which will offer great user experience. Patients will be more than happy to use the app. It will enable them to view their medical reports, get reminders regarding appointments and various other useful features.

Call us to get more information about our services and our expertise in mobile app development.

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