Lured by an assured 20% to 30% increase in their annual income, a band of tech-savvy doctors from the city now offer online medical consultation. And those opting for their services are patients from towns and rural areas in Telangana and Andhra Pradesh, who have registered online for family healthcare services.
In the last two months, an Internet-based medical platform — DocOnline — which operates out of Hyderabad, registered 30 doctors from here who are willing to consult via chat, phone call or video call with patients. The platform has also registered doctors from Mumbai and Pune. A similar platform e-Vaidya has been registering physicians who have been practising here for the past one year. Doctors told The Hindu that the pay they got for online consultation was higher than that from hospitals. “The salary structure in most hospitals, be it State or corporate-owned, is not updated regularly,” said Sindhura Rao Akkala, who left a private hospital two years ago to work for e-Vaidya first and now for DocOnline.
Uma Yadagiri, who has been practising for 17 years, 15 of which was in the U.S., said online consultation contributes to 50% of her annual income. “Online medicine here is similar to on-call practice in the U.S. With online medicine, a comprehensive health check-up can be done.After the video calls with patients, if I am not satisfied, I ask them to come and consult me or consult a nearby physician,” she said.
Among the doctors who offer the services are orthopaedics, obstetricians and gynaecologists.
‘Time-effective’
Patients said they found it cost and time-effective. “I paid ₹700 for a monthly package for myself and four family members. The consultations are unlimited and doctors are always available. It worked for me because I get constant migraine attacks for which I used to pay consultancy of ₹500 each time,” said Y. Roopa, 25, who lives in Tirupati.
As the services offered are diverse, the patients get consultation for more than one family member.
Most patients find home delivery of medicine very effective as it helps the elderly. A 62-year-old resident of Mahabubnagar town, C. Tayamma, had taken help online after she suffered hot oil burns on her hand in an accident. “When I video-called, the doctor prescribed an ointment and pills. I live with my daughter and the service proved to be effective. Now I want a bed-ridden relative to opt for online service,” said Ms. Tayamma, whose daughter had listed her as a dependent for the online service.
Speaking to The Hindu , Rahul Paith, COO of DocOnline, said online medicine would grow in the coming years. “India’s telemedicine market is expected to grow from $15 million (₹100 crore) to $32 million (₹210 crore) by 2020. There is much scope here,” he pointed out.
