It’s time to shift from traditional healthcare delivery to digital-first medicine. Why? Because digital solutions make healthcare more accessible, efficient, and personalized. With features that enable real-time data sharing and remote monitoring, it helps cultivate better communication between patients and providers. As patients look forward to faster and one-on-one support, digital tools help providers match their expectations while improving outcomes.
7-Step Guide to Start a Digital Health Company
If you are planning to enter the digital health space, these seven steps will put you ahead of the game:
- Create a digital-first solution: Devise a solution that solves a healthcare challenge using digital tools. Test it in real-world settings to ensure its efficiency.
- Build a scalable business model: Make sure your business plan caters to digital platforms and is able to grow while delivering measurable results.
- Focus on digital infrastructure: Plan for a secure system capable of scaling over time.
- Use existing technology: No need to reinvent the wheel. Instead, take advantage of platforms that already meet your needs. This saves time and resources.
- Test and improve: Begin the work with a prototype, gather feedback, and refine your solution until it is market-ready.
- Get funding strategically: Venture capital or partnerships can secure financing that aligns with your vision and supports your growth.
- Apply digital best practices: Use proven strategies for marketing, user experience, and scaling to grow your business.
Examples of Successful Digital Health Apps
Here are a few successful digital health apps that stand out for their innovation:
- Mobile MIM: This application was the first medical platform approved for the iTunes store. It allowed secure data sharing among professionals, including radiation images.
- Kry: A virtually connecting care platform that brings together patients, doctors, and therapists, offering accessible healthcare. It has raised $500 million and is leading the charge in telemedicine.
- Hinge Health: It offers tailored care programs for chronic musculoskeletal disorders, which is particularly useful for patients in the UK who have trouble accessing in-person treatment.
- AmWell: This platform has secure, HIPAA-compliant telehealth services for varying health needs. It facilitates everything, from urgent care to therapy, making it a trusted option for many.
- MDLive: Healthcare is more accessible with virtual consultations, allowing patients to see a doctor from home.
The Changing Healthcare Tech Stack
Healthcare is undergoing a massive transformation, and many companies that were founded over a decade ago are at risk of falling behind. The business models they were built on do not comply with the dynamics of today’s digital-first era. Modern infrastructure has redesigned the foundation required to build and scale a healthcare company, and established players are slow to adapt, even in specialized fields such as fertility services provided by institutions like the Danish Sperm Bank.
Embracing the change is not always about staying relevant in the field but about leveraging the new-found technology with speed. Startups can now take advantage of pre-built infrastructure, reducing development costs and time to market.
Let’s take up the example of AWS and Google Cloud.
These platforms have significantly lessened the cost of storing and managing data, all the while providing full-service computing capabilities. This eliminates the need for companies to invest in their own data centers. With just a few clicks, businesses can scale their computing power up or down as needed, freeing them to focus on solving real market problems instead of wasting resources on infrastructure.
Digital health operates similarly, and the new tech stack for healthcare includes pre-built solutions like:
- Data interoperability frameworks
- White-label telehealth platforms
- APIs
- AI/ML tools
- Clinical operations capabilities
The new tech stack for healthcare is more flexible, including solutions like SaMD, custom healthcare software development frameworks, telemedicine app development services, and APIs.. These allow companies to launch quickly, adjust to market demands, and scale without starting from scratch.
Digital Health Tools for 2023
The digital health industry is broadening its horizons with specialized tools to support startups. They help health tech companies focus on solving healthcare problems and shift the focus from building infrastructure to something that matters more – patient care.
The Cloud
Services like AWS offer HIPAA-compliant cloud storage for healthcare apps. Platforms like AWS Amplify make building scalable web and mobile apps easier, while services like Philips HealthSuite assist with managing connected medical devices.
APIs for Digital Health
APIs simplify integration, improve interoperability, and reduce development complexity.
- Verifiable: Automates the onboarding process for physicians.
- Eligible: Adds insurance billing capabilities to your financial systems.
- Particle: Provides secure access to patient data for better coordination.
- Ribbon Health: Ensures up-to-date provider directories.
- Redox: Streamlines EHR integration with systems like Epic and Cerner.
But Why Do These Tools Matter?
Building healthcare infrastructure from scratch is not only time-consuming but costly. Using these tools reduces development time and costs. With healthcare data analytics services and EPIC Integration, you can ensure that your solutions will integrate seamlessly with existing systems and deliver meaningful results. With class fitness app development services, healthcare organizations can accelerate innovation, bring products to market faster, and stay focused on improving patient outcomes.
Closing Note
In a nutshell, adopting health tech solutions by digital health companies — including any leading telemedicine app development company — paves the way to better quality healthcare products and superior user experiences. Succeeding in this competitive field requires researching successful digital startups, recognizing the abundance of top-tier companies creating tools for digital health innovation, and prioritizing your core value in the market.