The SOS Médecins app: connected health care

A different level of urgency in each case

The majority of SOS Doctors' patients call on their services for non-life-threatening emergencies, so it was very common for patients to have to wait for a certain amount of time. As the interventions were classified - as in traditional emergency centers - according to the degree of seriousness, it happened that patients contacted the call center again to know when the doctor would arrive at their home. This could, at times, overwhelm the doctors, who could not always provide accurate information. We have all been confronted at some point with the emergency medical wait. Waiting is a synonym of important stress which is harmful for the patient. We needed to find a simple way to reassure patients about the process of care.

The medical file, a not so simple transmission of information

Emergency physicians are required to give their patients a report of the procedure, known in common parlance as the history. A copy must also be sent to the patient's family physician, but this physician was not always known to the emergency team, and the latter did not systematically give a copy of the report to his patient. A clear problem of transparency and information exchange made post-operation difficult. The transmission of this information between the patient and the medical staff needed to be improved.

Management of confidential patient data

Medical information is classified as highly sensitive and has been the subject of heated debate for several years, even more so with the advent of health apps that collect an impressive amount of private data without necessarily informing their users. Our challenge was to successfully deliver sensitive medical information to patients in optimal security conditions and without imposing endless registration procedures, which would have discouraged anyone from using the service. The goal was to better inform users before and after the doctor's intervention by allowing them to access all their information quickly and securely.

Follow the status of the care in real time

Thanks to the care thread, the patient is aware of the status of the procedure down to the second. Who is my doctor, is he or she on his or her way, what is his or her location, how long will it take for him or her to arrive at my bedside? Displayed in the app and transmitted via push notifications, this information considerably reduces the stress factor of the patient and those around him. We designed a business app, used by the emergency physicians, which allowed them to take note of the information transmitted by the patient to the central office. We integrated a real-time geolocation module which allowed us to constantly locate all the emergency vehicles in the canton, and to be able to inform the patients in real time.

Return the medical record to the patient

At Atipik, we believe that the medical record belongs to the patient. We have therefore proposed to change the usual process of transmitting medical reports and analyses by sending them directly to the main stakeholder: the patient. These documents are sent 24 to 48 hours after the emergency visit and can be shared with a referring physician.

Direct access to all useful information

Other informative features have been designed for the app and its users. In particular, making available at a glance, the address and phone number of the pharmacies on call currently open. News information, to keep up to date with the progress of the flu epidemic or relevant medical news.