Market Trends and Press
You can’t watch the news or read an article these days that does not talk about the rising cost of healthcare, the challenges our current healthcare system faces in caring for an aging population, and the increasing emphasis on exercise and nutrition to prevent chronic diseases. A new medical concierge service, MedConciergeTM, now allows community developers and FTTH service providers to differentiate their properties by providing residents with on-demand, videoconferencing consultations and counseling from family care physicians and internal medicine specialists.As the financial and decision-making responsibility for managing health increasingly falls on consumers, and timely access to doctors and specialists becomes more difficult, products and services that offer personalized care are experiencing exceptional growth. Nowhere is this more evident that the booming segment referred to as “Concierge” or “Executive” Physician Practices. It is becoming more add more common for consumers to spend anywhere from $3,000 to $30,000 out of their own pockets annually to join from these practices to receive private, more immediate access to doctors who limit the number of patients they serve. In addition to the annual membership fees, members still pay for consultations and appointments with the physician and referred specialists, as well as the latest in technology-enabled, home health devices and services. Why are they doing this? Convenience and service that can be bought.
Consumer Demand For High-End Medical Care
The average consumer paid more than $11,000 out of their own pocket for medical expenses in 2006, and that figure is growing by more than 12% every year. In “return”, a visit to their doctors’ office only lasts, on average, seven and one half minutes, during which time they are interrupted within the first 23 seconds. For this experience, they’ve taken time off from work, drove to and from the physician’s office, and spent 45 minutes filling out redundant forms while waiting for their appointment.
During immediate medical situations that occur outside of normal office hours, families unsure of what to do next, or which appropriate actions to take, head for the emergency room of the local hospital, and deal with that experience.
For consumers of all types - the mother of 3; the daughter caring for an elderly parent dealing with a number of medical conditions; or the busy executive - the result is significant financial, emotional and physical costs.
In attempting to ease this burden, consumers are increasingly turning to Internet resources, such as WebMD, Google, MedLine, and Revolution Health, to better understand symptoms, conditions, medications, diets, routines and alternative treatments. It is not uncommon for health information seekers to spend four to five hours online per week seeking support and guidance. However, gathering information is a far cry from making sense of it all and applying it to their unique, personal needs. Consumers don’t just want information – they want to feel better. As a result, and to their physicians’ chagrin, patients enter appointments armed with inappropriate information and their own conclusions, undermining the intended, albeit truncated, purpose of the office visit.
Property developers and FTTH service providers now have an innovative, valuable service available to them that can help their residents and customers deal with today’s healthcare realities, . . . and tomorrow’s market opportunities.