OCBC Bank has partnered seven medical groups to launch a healthcare app which provides access to more than 100 general practitioners (GPs) and specialists in Singapore.
The HealthPass by OCBC mobile app is available to all Singapore residents over the age of 18, including those who are not customers of the bank.
Video consultations with both GPs and specialist doctors can be booked and administered through the app, and medication will be delivered to the patient’s doorstep, the bank said in a media statement on Tuesday.
Patients that require physical assessments can also use the app to book appointments to visit a GP or specialist clinic.
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The partners for the HealthPass app are Singapore Medical Group, StarMed Specialist Centre, Thomson Medical, Faith Medical Group, OneCare Medical Group, Etern Medical and True Medical.
For each telehealth and in-clinic visit to a GP during normal operating hours, the consultation fee is flat at S$20.
As for the 63 specialist doctors from 21 specialities – including gynaecology, paediatrics, cardiology, dermatology and oncology – patients will pay a flat fee of S$100 for their first telehealth or in-clinic consultation.
Medication and diagnostic procedures are charged separately, based on current practices.
“The flat consultation fees especially benefit individuals or families without existing private coverage for outpatient clinic visits, and individuals with longer-term medical needs,” OCBC said.
The HealthPass app integrates directly with the healthcare partners’ clinic management systems. Information is accessible only by users and their doctors, to provide personal data privacy and security.
Through the app, patients can also access their digital medical certificates, clinic invoices and laboratory results from the clinics they visited. “This makes it convenient for patients, especially those with ongoing medical needs, to easily retrieve past records for doctor consultations without the hassle of retrieving hard copies and maintaining a physical file,” OCBC said.
Pranav Seth, OCBC Bank’s head of digital and innovation, said: “Covid-19 will eventually pass, but its impact on the community will be long felt, and widespread access to telehealth will provide a big boost to help manage Singapore’s healthcare needs.”
“Notwithstanding that, in-clinic visits are still necessary for certain medical treatments. As a result, we will on-board more clinics and healthcare providers on the HealthPass by OCBC app, to ensure at least one clinic in the proximity of everyone’s home and workplace,” he added.
In addition, there is an online wellness store within the app. Employee benefits insurtech CXA is giving HealthPass app users access to more than 100 merchant offers for wellness products and services through the online store.
Users can buy preventive health services, such as health screenings, via the app. Other services available for purchase in the store include traditional Chinese medicine, dental services and pain management services.
To make digital payments to the clinics and online store, users can add a credit or debit card to the app, which helps them track all costs in one place.
As at 11.21am on Tuesday, shares of OCBC Bank gained S$0.01 or 0.1 per cent to S$9.11, Singapore Medical Group fell 0.5 Singapore cent or 2 per cent to 25 cents, while Thomson Medical lost 0.1 cent or 1.7 per cent to trade at 5.7 cents
Source: Business Times
