Mobile Apps for Health Care – Do You Need Them?

The use of mobile technology and devices in medicine and health care, or Mobile Health (mHealth), is quickly becoming a more common practice—especially among top hospitals and providers. By taking advantage of advancements in smartphone technology, like mobile applications, patients and clinicians can achieve better connectivity—but deciding when, how and what kind of app to implement can be difficult. According to a recent survey by market research company, Research Now, approximately 46 percent of clinicians expect to use some form of smartphone application within their practice by 2020.

A major issue in today’s health care landscape is communication among all parties involved—including doctors, pharmacies and patients. In regards to pharmacy benefits, only seven out of 10 Americans fill their prescriptions, just five out of 10 take their medication properly and as few as three in 10 return to their pharmacy for refills. Even worse is the number of these consumers who are becoming increasingly confused about their health care benefits, what is covered and where and how they are covered. The fix? Target them with what they use every day—their cellphones.

Smartphone usage is growing rapidly, with approximately 60 percent of American adults now having access to mobile applications. Even if your practice is small in comparison to the area hospital, launching an app for your patients can greatly increase positive relationships and reduce confusion regarding benefits and prescriptions. Apps can be tailor-made to alert patients about upcoming checkups, medication refills, dosage reminders, etc. and according to the same survey by Research Now, 96 percent of users are welcoming to these types of applications.

mHealth and the applications associated with the practice directly address the gaps in communication across the health care delivery system. By implementing an app that targets your patients in a nonintrusive, user-friendly manner, you can help better their health care experience and lower your risk of being hit with penalties such as readmissions. While highly encouraged, the process of developing and implementing an app can be a challenging undertaking. Fortunately, health care professionals can turn to a provider such as RxEOB, who is dedicated to providing the best mHealth offerings in the health care industry.

To find out more and get your mHealth app started, contact RxEOB today.