Imagine having a sinus or bladder infection that could be cleared up with a prescription for antibiotics but the first available doctor’s appointment is a week away. Or maybe you can’t afford the doctor’s visit because you lack insurance.
Those are precisely the situations CEO Jon Pearce envisioned when he conceived Zipnosis.com, an online doctor site that diagnoses and prescribes care for Minnesotans experiencing minor ailments like common colds, canker sores, seasonal allergies, or bladder infections. Minnesota residents can log on to Zipnosis.com, pay the $25 consultation fee, and complete an online survey. Within a couple of hours, a clinician reviews the symptoms and provides a diagnosis. Where needed, the clinican also provides a prescription that can be filled at a local pharmacy.
Launched in mid-2010, Pearce estimates that Zipnosis.com has handled roughly 2,000 online visits in the company’s first six months of operation. “Our typical user is a female in her mid-30s who is pressed for time and simply wants to get treated quickly and efficiently,” he explains. “We have only been up for about six months but we have seen quite a few return patients. It’s a transformative experience for them.”
Pearce believes that the site will be successful because the company is realistic about the limits of an online consultation. If the Zipnosis doctor believes the patient’s condition is too serious to be treated by an e-visit, or is not within the scope of the conditions that the online system is set up to treat, he or she is referred to a doctor in the Park Nicolett Health Services for an in-person exam.
The University of New Mexico Hospital has taken a different but no less innovative approach to the online consultation by facilitating doctor-to-doctor assistance. Nearly a decade ago, Sanjeev Arora, MD, one of the few hepatitis specialists in the state, grew frustrated with his inability to provide care to the thousands of New Mexicans who suffer from hepatitis C.
Patients wishing to see him had to wait about six months. However, the majority of the 30,000 hepatitis C patients did not live near Albuquerque or had the resources to see a specialist at all. To address the problem, Arora devised Project ECHO where medical specialists assist community doctors in diagnosing and treating chronic and complex diseases.
Would you consult an online doctor?
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For more news on the doctor-patient relationship, check out our blog post, “How Digital Tools Are Transforming Health” and “Prostate Cancer: When the Doctor Becomes the Patient.”
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