Main Features Healthcare Software/App Must Include
Advanced technologies have significantly changed the attitude to healthcare service and communication between patients and doctors. Mobile app development companies create modern healthcare apps that enable us to settle our health issues effortlessly and quickly just in a few taps. Statistics of recent years have shown that the number of doctors and patients who leverage a healthcare application or even several healthcare applications is increasingly growing. It is hardly surprising that mHealth apps are so popular now. Numerous advantages of mHealth apps are obvious, and the Covid-19 pandemic has demonstrated their efficiency and convenience.
Nowadays, mHealth apps must be robust, easy-to-use, secure, and have various features that help accelerate the diagnosis making and treatment processes to provide the best ever healthcare services.
Depending on the main purpose and target users, all healthcare applications can be divided into apps for doctors, apps for patients, and Healthcare Information Systems.
A set of embedded features primarily determines how successful and valuable your personal mobile app can be for various users. And with the experience I have gained over time at DeviQA - a leading software testing company, I now have a better understanding of the most valuable features for each healthcare app type. Here is a list of the most valuable healthcare mobile app features.
Main features of healthcare apps for patients
Medical appointment booking
As today most people have an extremely fast-paced lifestyle, it is important to provide them with an opportunity to arrange an appointment with a needed doctor online. A patient just should select the doctor, upload corresponding information or documents if needed, make an appointment according to the availability and wait for its confirmation. This approach helps save time and significantly simplifies the booking process.
Telehealth
Today’s technologies have changed interaction between doctors and patients and improved communication, even the geographical distance is not a problem anymore. That is why now telehealth is considered as a more effective way to track and treat some illnesses than a regular 15-minute in-person conversation. This feature is especially helpful now as we live in a pandemic period and have to practice self-isolation or social distancing.
Telehealth enables people to get efficient remote healthcare services. In-app chat, video calls, voice messages, files and pictures sharing provide effective communication, examination, and consultation.
e-Prescription
Owing to e-Prescription, patients can get a complete medicine list, including dosage and all other important details. Prescribers can get and update prescriptions being anywhere in the world. This feature also gives the opportunity to check whether the required medicines are available in the drug-stores. Moreover, the risk of errors in a prescription is minimal, and there is no need anymore to make out a doctor's illegible handwriting.
Electronic Healthcare Records (EHR)
This feature provides either patients or doctors with an opportunity to access all healthcare data in one place. The most various healthcare data are collected and then retrieved on demand: patient records and history, problem lists, medicine prescriptions, medical documents, patient-specific instructions, etc.
Notifications and Reminders
Any healthcare mobile app should send notifications and reminders, as none of us can reckon with certainty on our memory. Reminders are indeed helpful as Irregular pill taking and failure to follow treatment recommendations may lead to health deterioration and additional healthcare service expenses. Reminders are usually generated as push notifications on the ground of the e-prescription or patient's schedule.
Urgent help
This option is vitally important in case of an emergency that can happen at any time. A one-click ambulance call can be extremely helpful and even save someone's life. This option enables you to apply for the emergency help in case you, your relatives or friends need it.
Wearable device connection
Demand for smartwatches, trackers, and various wearable healthcare devices is rapidly growing these days. To make your mHealth app more helpful and advanced, you should configure it with wearable devices that must have such features as heart rate, blood pressure, tremors, blood sugar level, sleep patterns, etc.
Doctor profile
It is essential to provide patients with an opportunity to find an appropriate physician easily. It is impossible just to choose any one out of the doctor list. A comprehensive doctor profile can save either doctors' or patients' time. This option immensely improves the efficiency of the physician selection process. Each profile must contain comprehensive information about the doctor's qualifications, experience, ratings, location, certificates, contact details, and other related information.
Main features of healthcare apps for doctors
Schedule Management
This feature provides doctors with information as for appointment requests. Using this option, doctors can check confirmed appointments, create new appointments, and cancel them if there is a sufficient reason.
Patient Dashboard
A patient dashboard shows patients' clinical and personal information. It provides information on patient diagnosis history, lab results, prescriptions, etc. letting a doctor do a quick scan of the main data.
e-Prescription
We have already had a look at this feature from the patient's point of view, now let's consider its value for doctors. With this option, doctors can generate and send accurate prescriptions. It saves time as long as it improves interaction. Besides, the e-Prescription feature enables doctors to get acquainted with a medication history and prescription insurance of a patient. This feature is really one of the most valuable as it significantly decreases the number of mistakes in prescriptions.
Photo Capture
Using this feature, doctors can take high-quality photos with the help of special guides and tools that ensure consistency. Photo Capture must provide patients' image protection, tracking system access and all actions taken on images. This service significantly simplifies the photo management process.
Decision-making support
Sometimes doctors cannot make decisions and answer all questions on the spot. That is why this feature is extremely helpful, especially when it comes to treatments on the ground of evidence. Decision-making support offers a variety of tools to improve a decision-making process. It may contain clinical treatment guidelines for specific procedures, a medical calculator, request of laboratory tests with further receiving of results, etc. In other words, this feature lets doctors get additional information in order to establish an accurate diagnosis and make correct prescriptions.
Main features of Healthcare Information System
Patient Management
This feature enables medical institutions to store and manage data about patients, giving an opportunity to provide healthcare services more efficiently and quickly. Using this feature medical institution staff can easily find patient information, appointments, treatment history, medicine prescriptions, payment records, room location, and many others.
Staff Management
This option provides the list of all medical personnel working at the healthcare institution with their profiles. It considerably simplifies staff management.
Payment Management
This feature provides a smooth and secure payment for any paid healthcare services. It automatically creates invoices, keeps payment records, and generates pay-slip.
Inventory Management
Inventory is rather complicated and time-consuming. Healthcare software supplied with this valuable feature can considerably accelerate this process. It helps keep track of all stocks, orders, and assets.
Conclusion
If you have decided to develop a healthcare application, make sure that it offers the most valuable and useful features, that can make your personal healthcare app relevant and provide a good user experience. Still, whatever features you would like to implement into your application, remember that this type of software is rather specific and must comply with numerous requirements. Particular attention must be paid to security, performance, and HIPAA compliance.
