The Role of Mobile Apps in the Advancement of Healthcare

COVID-19 made history in our lives and the healthcare industry. Digitization in healthcare has increased as users demand more advanced solutions for their healthcare requirements. Statistics highlight that telemedicine has significantly improved in the past few years, including remote doctor-patient consultation and remote patient monitoring.

 As more users appreciate technological advancements, the demand for healthcare app development has become inevitable. Some surveys highlight that the mobile healthcare application industry will reach $300 billion by 2025. This means developing a mobile healthcare app can be the most significant investment. 

Healthcare app development requires a complete setup and deep market analysis. If you’re considering creating a medical startup, this article is exclusively for you. Here, we will cover every aspect of healthcare app development, including its cost and benefits for doctors and patients.

Healthcare App Development Process

A healthcare app is designed to simplify the lives of doctors and patients. mHealth is a broader niche that includes a variety of mobile applications. Depending on your chosen app category, a mobile healthcare application may differ in purpose.

Steps for Building a Healthcare App

Healthcare app development is a complex process that differs from other apps in numerous ways. Follow the steps below to develop a healthcare app that will make your thorny path shorter and more accessible.

Do Through Market Research 

Statista shows that more than 52,565 healthcare apps are available on the Google Play Store and 51,370 on the Apple App Store. This data-driven information indicates that you must put extra effort into making your app stand out. Research your niche and identify your competitors. Competitor analysis will help you determine your competitors’ strengths and weaknesses, which will help you beat the competition. 

Prioritize Your Audience 

When developing a healthcare app, you need to cater to the sensitivity of your audience’s problems. The user research phase is the most significant step of healthcare app development. This phase helps you understand the users’ problems and determine how your app can benefit your targeted audience.

Select an App Type 

The next step is choosing a suitable app type. Numerous types of healthcare apps are available for professionals and patients.

Design mHealth App

Create an app design that can bring more value to users. A mHealth app should be intuitive and consistent, smoothly leading users to the endpoint. The fewer your app’s interaction points, the better user experience it will deliver. 

Designing a healthcare app is the core phase, so focus on hiring a professional mHealth app development company.

Test Your App for Quality Assurance 

Once your medical care app is developed, it’s vital to fix bugs and glitches that may hamper the user experience.

Healthcare App Development Cost

The ultimate cost of developing a mHealth app depends on the developers’ rates and the features you want to add. A simple healthcare app may take 800 to 1,000 hours to complete, whereas a complex app takes about 2,000 to 2,500 hours. 

Here is a breakdown of healthcare app development costs depending on regions and complexity.

 Healthcare Mobile App Types and Trends 

Mobile app development has made the lives of patients and medical professionals much more manageable. Mobile app development has covered every aspect of the medical industry, from treatment monitoring and clinical documentation to maintaining health records. Healthcare mobile apps are divided into three broad categories:

Healthcare Apps for Professionals 

As the name suggests, professional healthcare apps are centered around doctors. They are used as mediators in communication between a doctor and a patient. You can choose from the following types of professional healthcare apps:

• Telemedicine Apps
• Networking Apps for Doctors 
• Doctor Appointment Apps 
• Health Tracking Apps
• Medical Reference Apps
• Report Monitoring Apps
• Medical Health Record Apps 

The professional healthcare apps aim to help doctors interact more effectively with their patients and share health-improving tips with them.

Healthcare Apps for Patients 

Healthcare apps for patients have gained massive penetration in the healthcare sector due to their instant availability and flexibility. You can find the following types of healthcare apps for patients:

• Fitness Apps 
• Dieting Apps
• Medical education Apps
• Women’s Health Tracking Apps 
• Diagnosis Apps 
• Mental Health Apps
• Healthy Lifestyle Apps
• Reminder Apps 

Healthcare Apps for Medical Institutions

• Inventory Management 
• Clinical Assistance Apps with EMR and HER Access 
• Billing Apps 
• Scheduling and Appointment Apps 

Healthcare Application Examples 

To make your healthcare app more impactful, you must tailor it to your users’ requirements. You can get inspiration from the following healthcare applications:

• WebMD
• HealthTap 
• Headspace 
• PEPID
• Apple Health 
• Teladoc 
• Medici 
• SleepCycle 

Benefits of Healthcare Apps for Patients and Doctors 

Medical apps benefit clinicians and patients through the quality of services and effective communication. Doctors, patients, and hospital staff highly appreciate these apps. Medical mobile applications can change the healthcare space in the following ways:

• With mHealth apps, doctors can monitor their patients’ health from a distance. Mobile apps also enable professionals to access electronic health records in real-time and share helpful health tips with patients.
• Patients can track their activities, such as meals, sleep times, and steps while running or walking, with mobile healthcare apps. They can also measure their different body conditions, such as glucose levels, heart rates, and blood pressure levels.
• App development in healthcare also offers easy and efficient payment options to make payments for you and your loved ones. 

Best Practices and Features in Healthcare Apps

Your mobile medical apps must have the following features to give a more impactful impression to your audience:

• Appointment management 
• Electronic health record (HER) feature 
• E-Prescriptions 
• Video conferring and messaging 
• Staff management 
• Payment Integrations
• Accessibly UI/UX
• Doctor and patient profiles 
• Users’ dashboard 

The Bottom Line 

Adopting the latest technologies, such as IoT and Artificial Intelligence, has opened new doors for healthcare app development. Developing a mHealth app can be a tedious process. Getting help from a trusted Mobile App Development Company can be ideal for creating a custom application.