The COVID-19 pandemic has led to the digitalization of our lifestyle. Healthcare apps have become very popular as patients take their physical and mental well-being more seriously. As a result, doctors master new technologies for online appointments and consulting. Good news for the healthcare app development industry is Statista predicts the global mobile health market (mHealth) will be $190 billion by 2025.
Considering these numbers, the growing demand for healthcare mobile app development services is inevitable. Let’s take a look at what is really important for businesses while developing mobile medical apps and describe recommendations for both iOS and Android medical app development.
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Mobile Health Market Overview
Medical institutions’ desire to prevent COVID-19 spread drove the increased demand for mobile healthcare apps. Thus, hospitals and clinics focused on remote communication with patients: online consultations in audio and video format, health monitoring, sharing medical data, and providing electronic prescriptions.
Researches show that the expected numbers increase to $269.31 billion by 2032. Again, this means the healthcare app development industry is on the rise and will be growing. A few mHealth startups have become a success:
- PatientsLikeMe is the largest integrated community, with 830,000 members sharing knowledge and experiences about 2,900 diseases and providing practical support to each other.
- The KRY app allows you to consult with doctors and therapists worldwide and care for physical and mental health from home. The app supports 25 languages.
- The K-Health app provides 24-hour access to board-certified physicians. It focuses on comprehensive care: primary care, urgent care, mental health, and pediatrics.
- CareZone helps organize medical information, set medication reminders, and manage medication lists.
Today, iOS and Android medical app development is promising and profitable. Healthcare institutions demand advanced medical software development services that increase productivity and provide flexibility. There are several trends worth paying attention to.
iOS and Android Healthcare Application Development Trends
Healthcare Android app development has become increasingly popular in recent years as more and more people rely on their smartphones for various tasks, including managing their health. Android apps offer many benefits for providers and patients alike.
For providers, apps can help streamline workflows, improve patient communication, and provide real-time patient data access. They also allow patients to access health information, schedule appointments, and communicate with providers.
Telemedicine
Telemedicine apps are great for communication between doctors and patients. The video call helps check out the patient’s condition and develop a treatment plan, as milder diseases do not require a physical visit to the clinic.
The Internet of Things
Integrating mobile apps with wearable devices has become essential to track users’ health. The IoT helps doctors check signals like body temperature, glucose level, heart rate, and blood pressure.
Augmented Reality (AR)
VR/AR tools for training simulations save operational costs and staff time. Also, they provide advanced data analysis and educational materials to scale medical practice worldwide. In this context healthcare mobile application development can provide proficient and custom solutions.
Mobile Payments and Blockchain
Blockchain technologies ensure GDPR and HIPAA compliance and improve in-app data protection. Moreover, paying medical bills online eliminates the possibility of spreading viruses during hospital queues.
Artificial Intelligence
AI technologies analyze large volumes of patient data and perform information consolidation. Mobile health apps development also became a great area of use for chatbots. They are in touch 24/7/365 to answer questions regarding hospital work, doctors’ schedules, and the health sector.
Gamification
Treatment becomes fun and effective if the app has a game element, especially for children. For example, taking medications on time, regular examinations, and scheduled visits to the doctor can be turned into achievements and rewarded with discounts on appointments.
Waiting Room
A waiting room is a digital space where patients undergo verification and wait for their appointment. This meeting app’s feature became widespread during the pandemic in iOS and Android healthcare app development. It helps reduce the incidence of various diseases among patients and healthcare workers.
Interoperability
Interoperability is the ability to get medical information from various sources and to transfer it to other organizations: hospitals, laboratories, pharmacies, and government agencies. The data exchange should be secure and meet no access and implementation restrictions.
Types of Mobile Applications in Medicine
The digital products of mobile health application development can be divided into three types depending on the purpose.
Professional IT Products for the Medical Field
Professional iOS and Android medical apps are meticulously crafted by mobile health app developers to cater to the needs of healthcare professionals.
These sophisticated applications enable remote health monitoring, facilitate seamless communication between providers and patients, streamline administrative tasks — for example, appointment scheduling and prescription management — and provide access to vital medical resources and information.
With intuitive user interfaces and robust security measures, these apps empower healthcare professionals to deliver high-quality care, improve patient outcomes, and enhance efficiency in healthcare delivery. As the demand for remote services continues to rise, the role of mobile health apps in transforming the healthcare landscape becomes increasingly indispensable.
- Medical reference books and resources check the symptoms-diagnosis relations, find medication information, and select reliable suppliers.
- Social media for healthcare providers enables communication, networking, and experience sharing with colleagues.
- Remote assistants help doctors analyze information from patients’ medical devices, like glucose levels, heart rate, and blood pressure. Prescription supplements help make correct prescriptions based on patient data and contraindications for certain medications.
- Workflow organizers or record apps collect and store patient information in one place to quickly access case histories, enhancing the treatment process.
- Payment apps are billing, accounting, and transaction processing programs that digitize critical payment acceptance and control.
- Tools for electronic prescriptions allow physicians to select medications based on dosage, accurately write prescriptions, and cancel them if necessary.
Healthcare mobile app development focuses on effective workflow management: from data analysis to patient interaction.
Mobile Healthcare Assistants
Mobile healthcare assistants are healthcare mobile development products designed to assist healthcare professionals.
They usually comprise mobile devices, such as smartphones or tablets, equipped with specialized software and applications that allow them to perform various healthcare-related tasks.
- Reminder apps notify about future doctor visits, medication intake, and home medkit replenishment.
- Mental health apps help to cope with depression and sleep disturbances by providing breathing exercises or soothing music.
- Sugar control apps integrated with wearable devices display glucose levels, remind about a diet, and provide lists of nutritional recommendations.
- Fitness apps track exercise levels, nutrition, and life activity metrics.
- Medical knowledge bases provide access to up-to-date information about various diseases: symptoms, prevention and treatment measures, and examination methods.
- Medication trackers set reminders, plan medications, keep a calendar, and find available drugs at local pharmacies.
- Dieting programs help choose a dietary regime and maintain healthy eating habits.
Shared Medical Applications
Shared apps are a form of mobile health application development that enhances doctor-patient interaction during online consultations allowing doctors unlimited instant access to medical data. Medical app data helps prompt the analysis of mild diseases and prescribing the necessary
Each type of digital product is designed to address specific healthcare needs and can potentially improve patient outcomes and quality of care. And as the healthcare industry embraces digital transformation, the demand for mobile healthcare apps will grow exponentially in the coming years.
Examples of In-demand Solutions in the Healthcare Market
The modern mHealth market contains a variety of healthcare app development solutions that result in beautiful and successful products. We’ll explore the features of five prominent examples.
MyTherapy: Smart Reminders
The program reminds you to perform medical procedures like taking medications, exercising, and measuring health metrics. Also, it tracks health information and visualizes progress, providing data on spheres that demand your attention.
Teladoc: 24/7 Online Consultations
The app provides 24/7 online consultations with doctors, therapists, and medical experts for various medical issues. The solution focuses on several areas: general medical assistance for non-emergency conditions, primary360, mental health, subspecialty care, and wellness care.
HealthTap: Expert Medical Care
The solution provides an opportunity to ask questions to the registered experts (90,000 specialists in 140 fields) for free. In addition, there is a paid option for individuals and families.
The following spheres of service are available:
- Primary/ chronic/ urgent care
- Female/ male/ senior/ children health
- Mental and behavioral health
- Fitness
- Wellness and lifestyle
- Travel medicine
- Sexual health.
Talkspace: Psychological Support
The app provides psychological support, including individual therapy, counseling for couples or teenagers, and psychiatric help with medication prescriptions. First, the patient has to answer a few questions, and within 48 hours, the system selects the relevant specialist to assist via video, audio call, or texting.
Headspace: Meditations for All of Life’s Moments
The app is a space for reflection and mindfulness. It improves psychological and physical health and reduces stress, sleep problems, and negative thoughts. The program offered within the app includes a variety of meditation techniques, tips, exercises, and sound and visual effects. If you want to launch your own mHealth project, start by studying the top offers on the market. Market analysis gives you an idea about the app’s required features, especially when considering a global service for online consultations.
Must-Have Healthcare Mobile App Features
Mobile healthcare software development is a rapidly growing field driven by the increasing use of smartphones and tablets in healthcare. A variety of features can be included during healthcare app development, depending on the user’s specific needs.
Login and Registration
There should be at most 3-5 registration steps for speed and ease of application use. After a user creates a personal account, he enters his name, age, phone number, email, and health information (chronic illness, weight, height, social security number).
Appointment Planning
An electronic calendar is a mandatory part of the application for making and tracking appointments. It also sends appointment reminders automatically.
Video and Audio Consulting
Mobile medical application development with a microphone and camera access allows a patient to discuss symptoms, concerns, and treatments with the doctor.
Monitoring User Condition
The custom medical application development can provide monitoring user live activity data such as heart rate, calories, and glucose levels when integrated with fitness trackers.
Support Chatbot
A virtual assistant is a must-have for every healthcare app as a solution to common problems. The medical chatbot can connect a user to a live consultant in case of a specific need.
Push Notifications
The application can generate push notifications about taking medications, making appointments, or getting electronic prescriptions.
Online Payments
Paying for doctor’s services and medications by smartphone is a fast and convenient way most users prefer. So adding payment options like PayPal, Visa, or MasterCard to your healthcare app is beneficial.
File Storage
All patient medical documents are stored safely in one place: doctor records, X-rays, reports, and laboratory results. It is convenient for analyzing health information and developing a treatment plan remotely.
Ratings and Reviews
Digital healthcare products use ratings to build a roster of top talent. Users select a doctor based on previous patients’ reviews. By collecting feedback regularly, medical professionals can improve the quality of services and become in demand.
A Step-by-Step Guide to Healthcare App Development
Make sure your health app development goes right from the first time with this checklist from Glorium Technologies’ leading healthcare app development company experts.
Define the Concept of Your Future IT Product
Statista said over 53 thousand medical applications were available on Google Play in 2021. So how can you stand out with your health mobile app development? First, analyze your product according to five criteria:
- Benefit: Identify weaknesses in the mHealth market and common problems users face. Does your application solve them?
- Uniqueness: Compare 5-10 similar applications in terms of interface and functions. What unique features can you develop?
- Competitiveness: Estimate your product’s success probability in a specific category. Identify competitors’ mistakes.
- Customer focus: Categorize your target audience by gender, income, age, and location.
- Technologies: Follow the key trends in the technology and medical segment (AR/VR, AI advancements).
Most applications replicate each other, devaluing their user experience. Instead, innovate ideas and ideals, and provide in-demand solutions for the mHealth market.
Select the OS (iOS or Android) for Medical App Development
Determine the percentage of your target audience that prefers iOS or Android. User statistics push for Android but make sure to consider the popularity of the iPhone as well. A multi-platform approach to creating an IT product is optimal. Consult with your health app development company on which path would be better for you.
Assess Budget, Timeline, and Technology Complexity
The full cycle of healthcare mobile app development from scratch takes time and resources. Releasing a mini-app like MVP might work better for a startup with limited funding, untested ideas, and strict deadlines. After launch, your mobile medical app developers can add improvements based on analyzing bugs, user reviews, and competitor reactions. One of the advantages of MVP is that it helps to attract investment.
Determine the Design of a Mobile Healthcare Application
Healthcare digital products must serve various user categories and purposes. Keep in mind five UI/UX design rules:
- Home page: A place for all primary data (life activity metrics, goals, or reminders)
- Responsive design: Suitable for screens of different sizes and iOS and Android platforms
- Optimized user path: Streamline for the most frequent actions
- Friendly interface: Be mindful of user challenges, as your app may target people with disabilities or chronic diseases
- Age-group relevant design: Larger fonts and simple layout for older users, creative visualization and abstract shapes for a younger generation.
Walk the user path yourself and assess the ease of navigating your medical application.
Design and Build the First Version of a Digital Product
You can develop your application using existing APIs and third-party portals. First, depict a prototype of a future application on paper or in a graphics editor. Then, a development partner will help you design the needed interface elements when prototyping your application. Together, you can discuss the features (registration, personal account, and interface of essential user services) your application should have.
Perform Testing and Bug Fixes
Manual and automated tests will validate the underlying functionality mechanisms. Software testers run the following tests of your mobile product:
- Device choice: QA specialists test the application on gadgets popular among the target audience and determine the oldest and newest supported operating systems.
- The guidelines compliance: The Android and iOS manuals describe the interface components, sizes, screen positioning, and other features. The app must follow these requirements.
- Permitted actions: Testers find out when a software product requests any permissions. Then, developers check activities by giving relevant permissions or denying them.
- Response to HTTP requests: Validates the application with different response codes, timeouts, and other changes.
- Update results test: It inspects the app performance after the database update to determine the affected functionality.
- Device functions test: Shows the app performance in particular situations like disconnecting the Internet and changing the date and time.
Your IT product must pass all tests and be healthcare compliant.
Ensure Compliance with International Data Privacy Requirements
Medical data is subject to controls and security measures. US and European legislation includes documents regulating data privacy in digital products. The principal regulations include HIPAA, NIST, GDPR, HiTECH, and PIPEDA, which will be discussed below.
Problem areas should be identified and inspected during testing. Data encryption, two-factor authentication, and strict access control for your healthcare app is the best practice for preventing information leakage into the databases of cybercriminals.
Choose Your Profit Strategy
The number of free applications in the Google Play Store and Apple Store exceeds that of paid ones. In August 2021, about 97% of Google Play applications were free. Monetization of android and ios medical app development can be as follows:
- Advertisements: The application contains advertisements for medical device manufacturers or private clinics
- Subscription: Using the application or some parts requires a weekly/month/year subscription
- Additional in-app purchases: The IT product is free, but some features are chargeable
- Sale of drugs and medical equipment: Purchase offers are posted in the app
Plan your in-app revenue and think long-term to add your needed features seamlessly. Your mobile platform investment can pay off if you choose a suitable monetization model.
Provide Technical Service and Support 24/7
The launch of the application requires constant maintenance and support at all deployment stages. Users should receive assistance with any problem. Users who contact technical support can offer new ideas for development and highlight mistakes.
Healthcare mobile app development companies often offer long-term partnerships to maintain a digital product. Working with experienced organizations, you entrust the entire product development cycle to IT pros. As part of the support, specialists ensure the smooth operation of the application, fix bugs, launch releases, and collect user feedback. The company also checks the operational status of servers, does back-ups, and updates applications on the platforms.
Essential Points to Consider for Medical Mobile App Development
Developing mobile applications necessitates careful attention to detail, ensuring the final product functions as intended while upholding high-quality standards. In the context of healthcare mobile applications, these challenges are magnified due to the heavily regulated nature of the health tech industry.
Complying with global healthcare regulations such as HIPAA and GDPR is imperative to protect data and meet legal requirements. Healthcare apps handle sensitive patient information, mandating robust data security measures, including encryption, secure authentication, and strict access controls.
These apps often require seamless integration with healthcare systems – for example, electronic health records (EHR) – and laboratory information systems to facilitate efficient data exchange. Clinical validation may also be necessary, involving trials to examine their impact on patient outcomes and healthcare processes.
User-centric design, regular updates, rigorous testing, and comprehensive documentation further ensure that healthcare mobile apps provide valuable tools that enhance patient care and adhere to industry standards.
mHealth Development: Data Protection
The first thing you need to pay attention to is data protection. Your task is to make optimal storage, transfer, and use conditions for enormous volumes of medical information. Failure to do so leads to the leakage of confidential patient data and financial and reputational problems for the company.
Reliable ways to enhance security:
- End-to-end encryption: cryptographic keys cannot be accessed by third parties
- Multifactor authentication: to log in, you must confirm your identity
- Expiration policy: the user must log in again after a certain period
If you compare developer’s work in the corporate sector with the healthcare, we constantly face limitations due to working with personal patient data. Accordingly, all the software we use (Redmine, GitLab, Jira, Gmail, Amazon Web Services, etc.) must meet a number of data security requirements, including encryption, two-factor authentication, etc. This requires separate HIPAA compliance agreements with the providers of these tools, as they are not HIPAA compliant by default.
Compliance with safety rules is not enough. We must also follow a list of procedures designed to ensure that HIPAA requirements are fully met, such as Breach Policy, Disaster Recovery, Risk Management, Incident Response, and others.
Valerii BobrovskiyDeveloper for Healthcare projects, Glorium Technologies
To bolster security and protect sensitive health information effectively, a range of reliable methods can be employed:
1. End-to-End Encryption: At the core of data protection lies the implementation of end-to-end encryption. This cryptographic technique ensures that sensitive data remains accessible only to authorized parties.
By encrypting data from its point of origin to its final destination, healthcare mobile applications can maintain the highest levels of confidentiality. Importantly, cryptographic keys used in this process are inaccessible to any third-party entities, ensuring data remains secure throughout its journey.
2. Multi-factor Authentication (MFA): Adding an extra layer of security, multifactor authentication (MFA) necessitates users confirming their identity through multiple means.
In addition to password, a user must provide a second piece of identifying information, for example, a one-time code they receive on their registered mobile device or a fingerprint. MFA significantly enhances login security, reducing the risk of unauthorized access, and offering peace of mind to both healthcare providers and patients.
3. Expiration Policy: Implementing a robust expiration policy is essential for proactively managing user access. Users are required to reauthenticate at predefined intervals, ensuring that inactive sessions are automatically logged out.
This policy enhances security by mitigating the risk of unauthorized access in cases where a user’s device is left unattended or becomes compromised. It serves as an additional layer of defense against potential security threats.
By integrating these robust security measures into the development process, healthcare mobile applications can fortify their defenses against data breaches and unauthorized access. Such proactive measures not only protect the confidentiality of patient data but also uphold the trust and integrity of the healthcare services provided.
Furthermore, they serve as a testament to the commitment of healthcare organizations to ensure the highest standards of data security in an increasingly interconnected digital healthcare landscape.
mHealth App Development: Smooth Health Data Transmission
Data must transfer between devices, systems, and software solutions without disruption or technical complexity. Therefore, you must correctly configure the API to ensure secure and seamless communication and app integration with various medical systems, platforms, and facility equipment.
mHealth App Development: Regulations
To be a long-term industry player, you must follow legal rules and regulations concerning confidentiality.
Compliances to consider when you are planning mHealth app development:
- HIPAA applies to the processing, storing, and transferring of any PHI in solutions created for the US. The goal is to protect patient data from theft and fraud and to ensure its integrity and availability.
- CCPA, the California state law, aims to inform customers what data the organization collects (name, mailing address, passport number, purchase history, biometrics, geolocation, education). The customer can request the deletion of the collected data.
- GDPR is in force in the EU and applies to companies that collect and process data (cloud storage).
- NIST is cybersecurity standards and technologies for information systems (US). Data that passes through a medical app of companies of all sizes must be securely protected.
- HITECH law was created as an incentive for US healthcare providers to implement EHRs and comply with security standards in general. PHI must be protected from unauthorized tampering, use, and distribution.
- PIPEDA federal law is in force in all Canadian provinces, supplemented by similar provincial laws in Alberta, Quebec, and British Columbia. It deals with using and disclosing personal data as part of business activities and their transfer between provinces and countries.
Ensure your app complies 100% with all regulations and rules for your sustainable mobile medical application development. Find out about your country or region’s healthcare and data protection laws in advance.
Then, make sure your developers are familiar with them and have a successful track record of launching such projects. Keep in mind that specific knowledge is one of the factors influencing healthcare mobile app development costs.
The Cost of Healthcare Mobile App Development
When choosing an outsourcing IT company, remember that the partner’s location affects the project’s price the most. For instance, the development costs about $130-150 per hour in the US and about $30-50 in Ukraine. The cost of IT specialists’ work will depend on several factors:
- Technologies: Java, Kotlin, PHP, JavaScript, Golang, Swift
- The number of specialists: QA specialists, programmers, and project managers
- Developer qualifications: Junior, Middle, Senior
- Industry experience: Knowledge of all requirements and the ability to comply with them
- The company’s geolocation: India, USA, Ukraine, and other countries
- Product creation approach: Native or cross-platform
- Operating system: Android, iOS, or both
- Project timeline: ASAP or fixed dates
- The complexity of design: Settings, branding, and animation
Applications with complex functionality will cost more than the basic version with standard features.
When you choose a healthcare mobile app development company, consider its approach to pricing:
- Time and materials: Mobile medical app developers approximately estimate the amount of work to be done. It plans each stage (sprint) and regularly contacts the client to discuss details. This model allows you to adjust at any stage, ensuring the project is flexible and adaptable.
- Fixed price: The team knows the exact scope of work and the important deadlines to meet. Also, there are precise project requirements at an early stage.
- Dedicated team: Healthcare app devs can adapt to your needs. You can choose long-term cooperation or temporarily expand your staff. All conditions, including cost, are agreed upon individually.Partnering with dedicated specialists for a large-scale, complex project makes sense. In this way, you will compensate for the lack of skills in your in-house team and get access to expert skills and modern technology. The cost of healthcare application development will depend on the factors described above.
Partnering with dedicated specialists for a large-scale, complex project makes sense. In this way, you will compensate for the lack of skills in your in-house team and get access to expert skills and modern technology. The cost will depend on the factors described above.
This is interesting: Read an article about healthcare web development.
Building a Mobile Healthcare App: Our Expertise
Healthcare apps have become indispensable tools for providers and patients alike. They play a crucial role in transforming the healthcare landscape, offering a wide array of benefits such as improved data management, cost reduction, and error minimization.
With 13+ years of expertise, we understand the significance of healthcare apps and are dedicated to delivering top-notch solutions that meet your specific needs. Our health app expertise extends beyond traditional medical app development to encompass a comprehensive range of healthcare apps, tailored to enhance patient care, streamline administrative tasks, and optimize healthcare delivery.
These healthcare apps are not limited to just one aspect of the healthcare ecosystem; they cover a broad spectrum of services, including medical record management, telemedicine solutions, and other innovative healthcare app functionalities. Our healthcare mobile app developers ensure that your healthcare app is user-friendly, secure, and compliant with all necessary regulations.
Moreover, staying ahead of the curve in the fast-evolving healthcare industry is crucial. We offer ongoing support and updates to keep your medical app up-to-date with the latest advancements in the field of medical mobile app development. Our commitment to excellence in healthcare app development ensures that your mobile assistant remains a valuable asset in the rapidly changing world of healthcare.
So, whether you are looking to create a healthcare app that caters to patient needs, facilitates efficient communication among healthcare professionals, or manages electronic health records, our healthcare app development services have you covered.
Contact us and let`s revolutionize healthcare through innovative and customized healthcare mobile solutions.