Hong Kong private clinics operator Quality HealthCare bets on growth in telemedicine
- Adoption of telemedicine will not wane even after the pandemic recedes, SCMP Research webinar hears
- Quality HealthCare’s mobile app currently has about 40,000 registered users, up from 24,000 in late October
Quality HealthCare Medical Services, one of the largest private health care providers in Hong Kong, aims to conduct 5 per cent of its consultations through telemedicine in three to four years, a fivefold increase.
The company, part of London-based international health care group Bupa since October 2013, launched a mobile app in August that allows patients to make bookings, have video consultations with general practitioners and order prescription drugs.
The adoption of telemedicine will not wane even after the pandemic recedes, since patients and doctors will have had the chance to gain confidence in the technology following the launch of services by both private and public providers this year, according to the company.
“The publication by the Medical Council of Hong Kong of ethical guidelines for telemedicine late last year came just in time – ahead of the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic – for us to develop our internal guidelines to encourage our doctors to try this new technology,” Chu said.
The company aims to have thousands of customers every month by next year, she said. “Our aim is that three to four years from now, telemedicine will account for 5 per cent of our total consultations, compared to less than 1 per cent now.”