Types of Healthcare Apps and How They Work

Last Updated on July 12, 2022

Healthcare apps are a blessing to human lives due to technology development. A mobile application that is capable of monitoring, detecting, and treating an illness is referred to as a healthcare app. 

Healthcare apps are helpful in maintaining a chronic disease. Not only performing the above-mentioned activities the apps are capable of providing stats and information regarding any disease. 

According to the reports by Mobius MD, the healthcare apps market was worth more than $47.7 billion in 2021. As per Statista, the healthcare app industry will be worth $189 billion in 2026.

More than 87 million people in the US use healthcare apps on a monthly basis. This proves the growth of interest in healthcare apps.

The growth is caused by several factors such as Covid-19, easy accessibility, and quick reports. The apps are quite helpful in helping an ill person live a normal life and be monitored simultaneously.

Types Of Healthcare Apps

Healthcare apps are gaining the primary preferences from people across the world. More than 51,370 healthcare apps are present in the Apple Store in 2021. So when you are looking to create a healthcare and fitness app it is important to understand the various categorical divisions to distinguish the apps. There are 5 types of healthcare apps.

1. Apps For Urgent Care

This category is for the apps that come in handy in emergency situations. These apps help a patient locate nearby urgent care units, costs, travel duration and waiting time, and directions as well. 

Key features of an urgent care app

• Expected cost calculator
• GPS to detect nearby emergency rooms
• Contact details of the emergency rooms

Example Of An Urgent Care App

Walk-In Urgent Care is one of the best urgent care apps available at current times. It helps provide help for different illnesses such as allergies, colds, coughs, UTIs, and many others as well.

Key features

• The app has a family members option where one can add his family members’ details
• Provide the location of nearby urgent care units
• Call-in services are available
• One can take appointments through the app

2. Apps To Help In Maintaining a Healthy Lifestyle

Apps in this category are used for educating patients, informing them about regular checkups, and suggesting activities to maintain and sustain a healthy lifestyle. From exercise guidance apps, fitness monitoring apps, diet, and nutrition apps to pregnancy apps all fall in this category.

Key features of a healthy lifestyle maintaining app

• After gaining the height and weight data suggesting proper exercise
• Push notifications as reminders
• Suggest diets
• Regular check-up reminder

Example Of  A Healthy Lifestyle App

Telehealth by HealthTap is the best available example of a healthy lifestyle maintaining app. The app is available in almost 175 countries. Sean K Mehra founded this app back in 2010. 

Key features

• In this app, one can directly chat with doctors
• 24/7 available service 
• Availability of video call, audio call, and text messaging mode of consultation
• A catalog of doctors is available in  the app
• Telehealth has a monthly or annual subscription plan

Related Read: Healthifyme Business Model

3. General Hospital Apps

General hospital apps are a great tool for hospitals to endorse their functionality and treatments. In this app details of the hospital, doctor’s list, urgent care waiting time, and types of provided treatments can be found. 

Key features of a general hospital app

• Can be used as a promotional tool
• List of available doctors 
• List of provided services
• Waiting time in the urgent care unit

Example Of A General Hospital App

Mayo Clinic is one of the biggest hospitals in the US. In fact, it is the top-ranked hospital in the country. Around 1.3 million patients are treated in a year. 

So the Mayo Clinic app is also the best example in the general hospital apps category. 

Key features

• Easy to book appointments through the app
• Availability of express care where a patient gets a virtual check-up within an hour
• Patients can access lab reports in the app 
• Tips on fitness, healthy diet and lifestyle are provided in the app
• In May 2022, Mayo Clinic app was downloaded by 20K users

Related Read: Guide To Make An App Like 1mg

4. Diagnosis Assistant Apps

In these categorical apps, patients can access the lab test reports. For example, x-ray reports, sample tests, electronic charts and many more can be accessed through the diagnosis assistant apps. 

Apart from accessing reports, these apps have the option to book appointments for tests as well.

Key features of diagnosis assistant apps

• Easy and secure access of reports to patients
• Availability of contact feature
• Patient history
• Mentioned lab test costs

Example Of A Diagnosis Assistant App

Kareo is a fine example of a diagnosis assistant app. The app is capable of storing patients’ lab reports digitally. It also helps physicians by offering key features such as notes. 

Key features

• Available option for taking appointments
• Record of patient history
• Option to contact securely
• Record of lab test bills 
• Kareo has generated $25.7 million as revenue in 2021 

5. Medication Tracking Apps

These apps are designed to help patients in maintaining their medicine habits by monitoring their doses, meals, the time gap between doses, and reminders about medicines as well. These apps are handy in having patients inaccurate medication. 

Key features of medication monitoring apps

•  Ability to check blood pressure
• Can be linked with other gadgets
• Push notifications, alarms as reminders
• A user-friendly interface

Example Of A Medicines Monitoring App

CareZone is one of the best medication monitoring apps on the market. The app was founded by Jonathan Schwartz in 2012. In early 2022 the app was remodified and added to the Walmart Wellness App. 

Key features

• The app can keep a record of details such as prescriber, dosages, and medicine names 
• Has a tracker to monitor blood pressure
• Push notifications as reminders

Related Read: Guide To Create A Women’s Health Tracking App

Current Trends In The Healthcare App Industry

• Health data of patients: This is the primary trend in healthcare app development. As the patients are inputting their own valuable data such as patient history, symptoms, lab reports, and habits at the initial phase therefore these are authentic data and primary trends in the app development. 

• Security: Digital security is the most necessary thing in  2022 for the online processing of any service in any sector. The patients are giving their original data therefore maintaining the security of the information is important.

• Location: Availability of GPS service will help an app to provide the patient with nearby hospitals, medical shops, and labs. Calling an ambulance will also be easy as the GPS will help the healthcare unit detect the patient’s address.

• Communication: Availability of communication between patients and healthcare units is essential in the apps. Communication also helps in gaining feedback from the patients on their experience with the app. The communication mode can be a chatbot, a normal call, or even a video call. It will help patients contact and book appointments as well as get checked up.

• Artificial Intelligence: Artificial Intelligence is also mandatory for the apps to customize their operation as per the patients. In 2022 AI is present everywhere as it helps the overall functionality of an app.
• Wearables: In the last few years smart wearables have been a trend. Following this trend, a healthcare app can be developed to be able in linking with these smart wearables to perform and provide certain services like blood pressure monitoring, oxygen level, and many more.

Related Read: Healthcare App Development Trends Of 2022  

Revenue Models Of Healthcare Apps

• Freemium and premium model: In 2022 the most common model for any app is the freemium and premium mode. A healthcare app can use this idea and provide a limited set of features in the freemium model while all unlocked features in the premium model. 

• Special content: A healthcare app must have content on health from experts. It also opens the door to earning more profit. A healthcare app can upload special seminar videos and guides and charge a specific amount from users to have them.

• Registration and subscription charges: As a healthcare app is basically a platform connecting patients and doctors one can form the registration and subscription model. In this model, a patient or a user needs to pay a fee to register or have a subscription for checkups, tests, and other services. 

• Ads: Ads are the common way of earning money for apps nowadays. But for a healthcare app the advertising opportunity is slim hence teaming up with local medical equipment sellers and pharmacies the app can input ads in its function. 

• Selling: Along with medical services an app can also start selling medical equipment, and medicines. It will help patients to have an all-in-one service experience and the app can earn more. 

• Promotion: At current times promotion is the key to gaining customer interest. A healthcare app can offer discounts, free sessions with experts, and other offers to engage customers in the app.
• Games: As a way of spreading healthy lifestyle education and building healthy habits a healthcare app can include games like quizzes on healthy habits, symptoms of diseases, and necessary actions in an emergency to increase user engagement.

Conclusion

An app is present for every human need with specific services. But a medical service is something that everyone needs and so a healthcare app can be a brilliant idea for gaining a huge consumer base along with profit.

The healthcare apps can be divided into 5 categories with each category having its specific roles. Every category is interlinked hence the chances of earning high profit are also there. 

A healthcare app with current trends can be effective in both, mitigating the patients’ troubles and generating revenue. As per a report by E-Marketer, more than 3,50,000 healthcare apps are available on the internet. 

The above-mentioned stat is proving that healthcare apps do have a bright future but finding your USP for success and the quality of the healthcare app you build will be the deciding factors.

Frequently Asked Questions About Healthcare Apps (FAQs)

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)