Healthcare Mobile App Development has increased considerably over the last decade. A huge number of hospitals are developing apps for their patients. Unfortunately, many apps have not performed as expected.

Healthcare Mobile App Development has had a huge impact on the medical world. Apps have infiltrated every area of our lives. Healthcare is just one of the many benefits we derive from using our smart phone. Today a smartphone can be a lifeline for a person with health issues.

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. Healthcare Mobile App Development has been a great boon in this sphere.

What is the function of a healthcare Mobile App?

The main function of a healthcare app is to provide a communication link between the hospital and a patient.  In simple terms a healthcare mobile app enables patients to contact the hospital and access their medical records.

With technological advances, medical implants or health monitoring devices worn by patients can be linked to their smartphone using Bluetooth. The information recorded is communicated directly to the hospital through the healthcare mobile app. Patients no longer need to visit the hospital regularly for check-ups. With this direct data communication the hospital is up to date with the current status of the patient’s health. Whether it is blood pressure levels, or blood sugar levels or heart rate, the hospital knows exactly what is happening with the patient. In case of any irregularity the hospital can send help immediately. This technology is relatively new and the Bluetooth health monitoring devices are very expensive. The cost of the device has made it unaffordable and only a few patients opt for it.

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.

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 customers’ needs is critical.

In a research conducted by Accenture in 2016 many causes for failure of healthcare mobile apps were identified. One of the main reasons for the 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 the features they desired. In other words patients did not find the app useful.

How can we resolve this?

A healthcare mobile app can be very useful and beneficial for both hospitals and their patients. The success of an app starts with meeting the user’s basic requirements. BluEnt explores possible solutions for effective Healthcare Mobile App Development.

Healthcare Mobile App development solutions for failing hospital apps

How can a hospital ensure that their app will provide them with reliable patient information?  Can a hospital safely discharge a patient with the assurance of remotely monitoring their health through an app?

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

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.

Network coverage: One of the common reasons for healthcare mobile app failure is network coverage. The Healthcare app is not able to send a feedback to the main server. A lot of focus is given to the healthcare mobile app development to ensure it works well. But the backend program on the server which contacts the smartphone needs to perform some functions too. If the server is not getting feedback from the healthcare app it should create an immediate alert and also update the last known location of contact.

Device malfunction: In the case of linking a health monitoring device through the app, it should be able to recognize the difference between erratic data. Is it a medical emergency or a medical monitoring device malfunction? The developer needs to understand the limitations of the medical monitoring device. This information has to be assimilated and incorporate during the healthcare mobile app development stage.

Useful Features: The healthcare mobile app should include features which are useful to the patient. This will encourage them to use 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 meds, is a big deal to patients, especially the senior society. Many hospitals have not paid heed to the patient’s requirement during healthcare mobile app development. The focus by most hospitals while designing the healthcare app has been their own requirement.

There are huge benefits for hospitals if their patients use the healthcare mobile app. To encourage patients to use their app it has to be worth their time.

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 healthcare mobile app development.

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