Telemedicine App Development from Scratch: Types, Process, Cost & More

It’s no wonder how the Covid-19 pandemic has changed every aspect of our lives. It’s not a hearsay but a reality we all went through. Remember the time when hospitals were overwhelmed with COVID patients and doctors suggesting to stay at home and consult everything virtually? The convenience of doing everything from home and saving from the hassle of standing in long queues at the hospital has led to the rising demand for telemedicine app development. The healthcare industry has witnessed the most significant transformation triggered by the pandemic, with more and more patients opting for virtual consultations instead of physical visits. 

Even a recent survey by McKinsey revealed that just a year after pandemic outbreak, there was a 38x increase in the telemedicine services. And that’s not only the thing of past; but something that will evolved into something big in the healthcare industry in coming years. These telehealth software aren’t just beneficial for patients but for healthcare businesses looking for new revenue streams.

So, if you’re healthcare business needs an advancement and digital transformation, there’sno better moment than now to invest in Telemedicine app development services. Although the idea seems lucrative, we know how hard it is shape it. Therefore, we have come up with this comprehensive guide to Telemedicine app development from scratch that will help you understand the complexities of the process, its types, cost, benefits, features and more.

Market Analysis: The Scope of Telemedicine Apps in Numbers

• The global telemedicine market was worth $114.98 billion in 2023, which is expected to expand to $365.17 billion by 2030, growing at a CAGR of 17.95%. (Source: Yahoo Finance)
• 80% of patients have accessed telemedicine services at least once in their lives. (Source: Rock Health)
• 74% of millennials have adopted teleconsultations instead of in-person appointments. (Source: GlobalMed)
• 96% of telepsychiatry patients embrace virtual healthcare for their mental illness. (Source: SagePub)
• 55% of patients believe they get better care with virtual consultations. (Source: McKinsey)
• 52.5% of healthcare businesses believe they offer more effective treatment through teleconsultations. (Source: ResearchGate)
• 27% of patients feel more comfortable with telemedicine apps. (Source: Doximity)

What is a Telemedicine App, and Why Do You Need One? 

A telemedicine app is a specialized software solution that helps make healthcare easier and extensively accessible for patients and doctors. It has two sides:

• Patient Side: Patients can find a doctor, book an appointment, upload documents, and talk to the doctor through text, voice, or video.
• Doctor Side: Doctors can check patient files, confirm or cancel appointments, and refer patients to other specialists if needed.

Let us tell you that telehealth isn't a new concept. The first remote consultations happened in the late 1950s at the Nebraska Psychiatric Institute. But, telemedicine became very popular in 2020 and 2021 because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

In some European countries, almost 50% of doctors were using telemedicine in 2020, and this number is still growing. Many new healthcare companies have entered in the past few years, and there's still room for more. If you're interested in the business side of telehealth, now is a great time to get invest in telemedicine app development. 

Benefits of Investing in Telemedicine App Development Solutions

Before making a significant investment in development, it is obvious to question like, "Should I make a telemedicine app?" The market look good, the statistics are promising and telemedicine will become even more important in the future.

But is it worth investing in telemedicine app development from scratch? Yes, it definitely is. Here are the main benefits of telemedicine apps for healthcare providers and patients.

For Healthcare Companies:

• Quick Data Access: Doctors can look at a patient's file before or right after the appointment. This helps them to be more productive in less time and see more patients in a day.
• Complete Medical History: A doctor’s side of an app shows all the important information about a patient, like tests, reports from other doctors, and other documents, all in one place.
• Wider Reach: With remote healthcare, hospitals and doctors can help patients outside their local area. They can even reach patients in other countries. This is a big advantage of telemedicine apps for healthcare companies.

For Patients

• Quick Care: With a telehealth app, patients can talk to a doctor in just a few hours or even minutes. This is much faster than waiting weeks for an appointment at a physical hospital.
• Specialist Access: If a patient lives in an area with only general doctors, you can use the app to consult with specialists. This can be very important for your health.
• Multiple Opinions: All the patient’s health information is stored in one app. This means you can easily get opinions from different doctors to get a better diagnosis and treatment plan.

Understanding the Types of Telemedicine Apps 

Telemedicine is a fast-growing part of the health tech industry. It offers new solutions to different health problems. To understand the concept better, we have divided telemedicine into a few main types of medical apps for patients, healthcare providers, and others.

 Here are the main types of telemedicine apps we see today.

Synchronous Telemedicine

Synchronous telemedicine is like a regular doctor's appointment. The patient and doctor talk in real-time through audio or video. The doctor can give advice, check test results, or guide the patient through procedures at home. These apps help people who have limited access to healthcare. They are also useful for urgent care.

Asynchronous Telemedicine

Store-and-forward health services, also popular as Asynchronous telemedicine, lets patients and doctors share information without needing to be online at the same time. Patients can upload test results, photos, and videos, and describe their problem. 

Doctors can look at these documents and give advice whenever they have time. Patients can also check the doctor's advice whenever it's convenient for them. One big benefit is that different doctors can look at the same information to give better care.

IoT in Telemedicine

The Internet of Things (IoT) is very popular among telemedicine service providers. It helps speed up the exchange of information between patients and healthcare providers. 

Using various IoT healthcare devices like blood pressure monitors, pulse oximeters, and glucose meters, patients can either manually add their data to the app or have it sync automatically. This allows healthcare providers to monitor the results in real-time and get a better understanding of the patient's health.

Understanding the Revenue Models of Telemedicine Apps

The main goal of developing a telemedicine app is to provide care and, obviously, to make money for your business. But how can you earn money with a telemedicine app?

Here are the most viable and profitable revenue models for a telemedicine app: 

Pay-per-Appointment

Users pay a fee for each appointment they book. Part of this fee goes to the healthcare company. The cost can change based on the type of appointment or the experience of the healthcare provider.

Subscription-Based Approach

In this model, users pay a regular fee to use telemedicine services. You can offer plans that are weekly, monthly, or yearly based on how many consultations are needed. This way, patients pay once for all their consultations, and the company makes a good profit.

Core Features of a Telemedicine App You Can’t Afford to Overlook

This section of the guide will help you understand how you can make your telemedicine app stand out with its features and functionalities. Here are some important features to include:

For Doctors

• Appointment Management: This feature allows doctors or their assistants to see the daily calendar and available time slots. They can set available hours for patients and add, change, or delete appointments.
• EHR Integration: If the app is part of a bigger healthcare service, like a hospital, it needs to sync quickly and securely with the hospital's Electronic Health Records (EHR) system for good treatment.
• Group Calls: This feature might not be in the MVP version of the app, but it can make things better for both patients and doctors. With group calls, doctors can talk to other specialists about tough cases, leading to better diagnoses and care.
• AI Chatbot: A chatbot in a telehealth app can save doctors and nurses a lot of time. It can help with tasks like making and canceling appointments, getting test results, and asking patients to rate their visits.
• E-prescriptions: Electronic prescriptions save time for both patients and doctors. They make remote healthcare more modern and practical compared to in-person visits.

For Patients

• Registration & Data Sharing: To use the telemedicine app, patients need to sign up first. After signing up, they can fill out a form with their personal and health information or upload their health records and test results.
• Communication Features: The app lets you talk to doctors through live text chat and video chat. If your health issue is not urgent, you can also send messages whenever it suits you and the doctor.
• Doctor Selection & Scheduling: Patients can book appointments by viewing a list of available doctors in their required specialty. They can group and sort doctors by location, rating, and availability. Patients can also see the upcoming schedule of the selected doctor.
• Doctor Rating: After the appointment, patients can rate the doctor and share their experience in a review. These ratings and reviews are visible to other registered patients.
• Safe Payments: Most consultations are paid, and payments need to be made before or right after the consultation. A secure and fast payment gateway is a must-have for a telehealth app. Many companies use API technology for payment functions.

How Much Does Telemedicine App Development Cost?

As we always say, the cost of developing a telehealth app can vary widely and is influenced by several key factors. Here’s a simple breakdown of what affects the overall cost:

• Project scope: How big and detailed will the app be?
• Team location: Where your team is based.
• Cooperation model: How you work with your team.

The team you need to build the app includes:

• System Architect: Plans the app’s structure.
• Business Analyst: Understands what the app needs to do.
• UI/UX Designer: Designs how the app looks and feels.
• Project Manager: Keeps the project on track.
• Front-End Developer: Builds the part of the app users see.
• Back-End Developer: Builds the part of the app users don’t see.
• Software QA Engineer: Tests the app to make sure it works well.
• DevOps Engineer: Manages the app’s infrastructure.

Calculating all the values and factors, the average cost of building a telehealth app can be:

• Basic app or MVP: Around $40,000-$50,000.
• Advanced app: Around $80,000-$90,000.
• Complex app: $120,000 or more.

Required Tech Stack for Telemedicine App Development

The technology you use to build your telehealth app is very important. It affects everything from what your app can do, who you can work with, how much it will cost, and how long it will take to finish.

That's why picking the right technology is a big decision. You can't just choose the most popular tools or the ones your team knows best. You need to pick the right tools for your specific needs.

Here's a table showing the technology you need to develop a telehealth app:

Latest Telemedicine App Development Trends to Watch Out 

Telemedicine services are becoming more advanced with each passing day. They keep adding new features and use the latest technologies. Here are some emerging technologies you might want to integrate into your telehealth app:

• Big Data: Healthcare involves a lot of data. Big data technology helps manage and access patient information quickly. Cloud storage keeps files available and secure.
• AI (Artificial Intelligence): AI in healthcare has broader applications. They can create chatbots that act like doctors when no doctor is available. AI can also quickly look at symptoms and test results to give a fast and accurate diagnosis. This makes AI very important in telemedicine.
• Blockchain: Sensitive data is often shared between patients, doctors, and hospitals in healthcare. Blockchain technology helps keep this data safe by making it harder for unauthorized people to access it. This prevents sensitive information from being stolen or misused.
• AR and VR (Augmented Reality and Virtual Reality): AR and VR are not just for entertainment. They are used to train doctors, helping them improve their skills. In telemedicine, AR and VR are used in areas like neuropsychology and psychotherapy to help with diagnosis and treatment.

How to Develop a Telemedicine App?

Creating a telemedicine app is a significant and time-consuming process. Depending on the complexity of your idea and other factors, it can take anywhere from six months to a year to finish.

To make sure your project is done on time and includes all the important features, you should follow certain steps. Here are the steps to develop a telehealth app:

Step 1: Validate Your Idea

When you have an idea for a telehealth app, the first thing to do is to think about it in detail and make sure it can work. You need to know what problems your app will solve and who will use it. 

It’s a good idea to talk to the people who might use your app to find out what they want, how good they are with technology, and how much they are willing to pay. You also need to look at other similar apps to see what works and what doesn’t. A business analyst can help you with these tasks.

Step 2: Find a Tech Partner

When starting a telemedicine project, you need to decide if you can build it yourself or if you need help from a professional mobile app development company. For bigger projects, you might need a partner with healthcare experience, even if you have your own team. This is because meeting all the industry rules can be tough for first-time developers.

Step 3: Build the App Structure

A key step in making a telemedicine app is setting up its structure. Different projects need different parts, so you might need a Systems Architect. This person knows both the technical and business sides and can connect your project idea with your resources. The structure will include features for patients, doctors, and administrators, communication tools, APIs, microservices, and cloud storage.

Step 4: Design the User Interface (UI) and User Experience (UX)

A good UI/UX design is critical. Think about your apps; a good design can make them successful, while a bad one can ruin them. This is especially true if your users are not very tech-savvy. Your app should be easy to use on any device, and all features should be easy to find and use. A skilled UI/UX designer can help you create a great visual design for your app.

Step 5: Develop Your Software

This is when your project starts to take shape. It’s a good idea to start with a basic version of your app (called an MVP) to see how people like it. Then, you can add more features later. This might cost more at first, but it can help you avoid expensive mistakes. The key is to make sure your app is developed on time and meets your original plans.

Step 6: Check Quality 

Before releasing your app, make sure it’s ready. Test it thoroughly. This includes checking if it works well, if users like it, if it works on different devices, if it’s secure, and if the design is good. Also, do quick tests to ensure everything is stable.

Step 7: Launch Your App 

Once testing is done, it’s time to release your app. Publish your telemedicine app to the App Store and Google Play Store, and make it available online. Start a marketing campaign to let people know about it and grow your user base. After launching, keep updating your app, improve its usability, add new features, and listen to user feedback to stay competitive in the telemedicine market.

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Conclusion 

Telemedicine has been around for a long time, but it's still new in terms of being widely used. This means you have a great chance to make your app idea successful. However, creating a telemedicine app is a big task requiring careful planning and execution.

You will need to make many important decisions, like what features to include and which technology to use. Building a telemedicine app also requires a lot of money, so you need to find ways to make money from your app. With all these things in place, a good team, and a solid plan, your telehealth project can be successful. 

So, if you’re satisfied with this guide to Telemedicine app development from scratch and planning to invest in it, partner with a professional mobile app development company, such as Mtoag Technologies. 

FAQs

What Hardware and Software are Used for Telemedicine?

Telemedicine uses various hardware and software to facilitate remote healthcare. Hardware includes devices like laptops, tablets, smartphones, webcams, microphones, and monitors. The software involves telemedicine platforms, electronic health records (EHR), and secure messaging systems. Together, these tools enable doctors and patients to communicate effectively, share medical data, and conduct virtual consultations without physical contact.

How is AI Used in Telemedicine Apps?

Artificial Intelligence (AI) enhances telemedicine apps by analyzing health data to predict outcomes and tailor treatments. AI helps improve diagnosis accuracy, monitor patient health, and personalize treatment plans. It also assists in automating administrative tasks, reducing errors, and providing real-time decision support for healthcare providers, making remote care more efficient and effective.

Is Telemedicine a SaaS?

Yes, telemedicine can be considered a Software as a Service (SaaS). Telemedicine platforms are often delivered as SaaS solutions, providing healthcare providers with tools for virtual consultations, secure messaging, and patient data management. These platforms are hosted on the cloud, allowing easy access and scalability without extensive on-premises infrastructure.

What is the Minimum Budget for Telemedicine App Development?

The minimum budget for developing a telemedicine app can range from $40,000 to $200,000. The cost depends on factors like app complexity, features, UI/UX design, and the development team's location and expertise. Basic apps with essential features cost less, while advanced apps with more functionalities and integrations cost more.

How Long Does It Take to Develop a Telemedicine App?

Developing a telemedicine app typically takes 3 to 6 months. The process includes requirement gathering, project planning, designing, development, testing, and deployment. The timeline can vary based on the app's complexity, the development team's size, and the specific features required.

What are the Legal Considerations for Telemedicine?

Legal considerations for telemedicine include ensuring providers are licensed in the patient’s state, obtaining informed consent from patients, and complying with data privacy laws like HIPAA. Providers must also ensure their insurance covers telemedicine services and be aware of state-specific regulations regarding online prescribing, especially for controlled substances. These measures help maintain telemedicine practices' safety, legality, and quality.