Skip to main content
Sister Publication Links
  • ESG: THE IMPLEMENTATION IMPERATIVE
Subscribe
  • Sign Up Free
  • Login
  • Subscribe
  • News
    • Current News
    • Providers
    • Insurance
    • Digital Health
    • Government
    • Finance
    • Technology
    • Safety & Quality
    • Transformation
    • People
    • Regional News
    • Digital Edition (Web Version)
    • Patients
    • Operations
    • Care Delivery
    • Payment
    • Midwest
    • Northeast
    • South
    • West
  • Unwell in America
  • Opinion
    • Bold Moves
    • Breaking Bias
    • Commentaries
    • Letters
    • Vital Signs Blog
    • From the Editor
  • Events & Awards
    • Awards
    • Conferences
    • Galas
    • Virtual Briefings
    • Webinars
    • Nominate/Eligibility
    • 100 Most Influential People
    • 50 Most Influential Clinical Executives
    • Best Places to Work in Healthcare
    • Excellence in Governance
    • Health Care Hall of Fame
    • Healthcare Marketing Impact Awards
    • Top 25 Emerging Leaders
    • Top 25 Innovators
    • Diversity in Healthcare
      • - Luminaries
      • - Top 25 Diversity Leaders
      • - Leaders to Watch
    • Women in Healthcare
      • - Luminaries
      • - Top 25 Women Leaders
      • - Women to Watch
    • Digital Health Transformation Summit
    • ESG: The Implementation Imperative Summit
    • Leadership Symposium
    • Social Determinants of Health Symposium
    • Women Leaders in Healthcare Conference
    • Best Places to Work Awards Gala
    • Health Care Hall of Fame Gala
    • Top 25 Diversity Leaders Gala
    • Top 25 Women Leaders Gala
    • - Hospital of the Future
    • - Value Based Care
    • - Hospital at Home
    • - Workplace of the Future
    • - Digital Health
    • - Future of Staffing
    • - Hospital of the Future (Fall)
  • Multimedia
    • Podcast - Beyond the Byline
    • Sponsored Podcast - Healthcare Insider
    • Video Series - The Check Up
    • Sponsored Video Series - One on One
  • Data Center
    • Data Center Home
    • Hospital Financials
    • Staffing & Compensation
    • Quality & Safety
    • Mergers & Acquisitions
    • Data Archive
    • Resource Guide: By the Numbers
    • Surveys
    • Data Points
  • MORE+
    • Contact Us
    • Advertise
    • Media Kit
    • Newsletters
    • Jobs
    • People on the Move
    • Reprints & Licensing
MENU
Breadcrumb
  1. Home
  2. Information Technology
February 27, 2013 12:00 AM

Happtique moves into app testing, certification

Joseph Conn
  • Tweet
  • Share
  • Share
  • Email
  • More
    Reprints Print

    Happtique, the for-profit mobile healthcare applications marketplace developed by GNYHA Ventures, the group purchasing arm of the Greater New York Hospital Association, has released its first set of testing and certification criteria for mobile healthcare apps, the company has announced.

    Launched in 2010, Happtique aims to help healthcare providers, patients and consumers wade through a growing tide of mobile healthcare applications, which are now estimated at 40,000 apps across all mobile platforms, and could be as high as 50,000 by the end of the year, according to Ben Chodor, CEO of Happtique.

    The newly released standards are available for developers to download at its website. The company will begin accepting candidate applications for testing and certification this spring, Chodor said. Testing and certification should take about 30 days per app, he said. Meanwhile, the company is lining up independent organizations to participate in the testing and certification process.

    According to a news release, testing for technical standards will be conducted by Intertek, a publicly traded, London-based for-profit corporation that provides global testing and certification services across a host of industries, including information technology and healthcare. Those apps that pass muster technically also will be evaluated for their content. So far, the Association of American Medical Colleges will evaluate those with medical education content while CGFNS International, the umbrella organization for the Commission on Graduates of Foreign Nursing Schools, will evaluate educational content for mobile nursing applications, according to Happtique.

    “We'll be adding other societies and organizations over the next couple of months,” Chodor said. “The goal is, when we're reviewing dermatology apps, they'll be reviewed by dermatologists; when we're doing physical therapy apps, they'll be reviewed by physical therapists. Our goal is by early spring to open up the door for all kinds of apps.”

    The mobile app world will be divided initially into two broad camps, applications designed for use by clinicians in one, and applications intended for consumer use in the other, Chodor said. In addition, they'll be categorized and “curated” by function. Thus far, Happtique has identified more than 330 functional categories, and the list is growing, he said. One aim of the company is for clinicians to electronically “prescribe” mobile health applications for their patients from the Happtique marketplace.

    Happtique is also developing its own mobile application for use by its customers to access its app store, according to Tammy Lewis, its chief marketing and strategy officer. Lewis said a final price is still being worked out, but Happtique expects the cost to a developer of testing and certification to be “in the area of $3,000,” which will be used in part to pay for the independent testing services “to ensure that they're reviewing the apps in an expeditious fashion.”

    Hospitals and other healthcare organizations will pay to be able to use the marketplace and app-prescribing service as well. Charges to healthcare organizations will vary based on the number of clinicians, hospitals, branding and customization of the marketplace to their needs but a “range of $50,000 to $100,000 is probably accurate,” Lewis said.

    Brian Dolan covers the mobile health technology arena as the managing editor and co-founder of the website MobiHealthNews.

    So far, Dolan said, Happtique is alone in the field attempting to rate mobile health apps. He said he is often asked whether Happtique will become the Consumer Reports for mobile health applications. Dolan said it's important to note that Consumer Reports is a not-for-profit organization while Happtique is not.

    “I'm not saying anything bad about them,” Dolan said, “but the apps that they certify are going into their prescription apps platform.”

    Letter
    to the
    Editor

    Send us a letter

    Have an opinion about this story? Click here to submit a Letter to the Editor, and we may publish it in print.

    Recommended for You
    Judy_Faulkner_Epic_HIMSS17_edit_i.jpg
    Epic outlines what's ahead for patient portal, Cosmos
    Cerner_fullsize_AP_i.jpg
    Cerner to pay $1.8M to resolve racial discrimination allegations
    Most Popular
    1
    More healthcare organizations at risk of credit default, Moody's says
    2
    Centene fills out senior executive team with new president, COO
    3
    SCAN, CareOregon plan to merge into the HealthRight Group
    4
    Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan unveils big push that lets physicians take on risk, reap rewards
    5
    Bright Health weighs reverse stock split as delisting looms
    Sponsored Content
    Health IT Strategist (HITS) Newsletter: Sign up for the latest IT and medical technology news delivered 3 days a week (M, W, F).
     
    Get Newsletters

    Sign up for enewsletters and alerts to receive breaking news and in-depth coverage of healthcare events and trends, as they happen, right to your inbox.

    Subscribe Today
    MH Magazine Cover

    MH magazine offers content that sheds light on healthcare leaders’ complex choices and touch points—from strategy, governance, leadership development and finance to operations, clinical care, and marketing.

    Subscribe
    Connect with Us
    • LinkedIn
    • Twitter
    • Facebook
    • RSS

    Our Mission

    Modern Healthcare empowers industry leaders to succeed by providing unbiased reporting of the news, insights, analysis and data.

    Contact Us

    (877) 812-1581

    Email us

     

    Resources
    • Contact Us
    • Advertise with Us
    • Ad Choices Ad Choices
    • Sitemap
    Editorial Dept
    • Submission Guidelines
    • Code of Ethics
    • Awards
    • About Us
    Legal
    • Terms and Conditions
    • Privacy Policy
    • Privacy Request
    Modern Healthcare
    Copyright © 1996-2023. Crain Communications, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
    • News
      • Current News
      • Providers
      • Insurance
      • Digital Health
      • Government
      • Finance
      • Technology
      • Safety & Quality
      • Transformation
        • Patients
        • Operations
        • Care Delivery
        • Payment
      • People
      • Regional News
        • Midwest
        • Northeast
        • South
        • West
      • Digital Edition (Web Version)
    • Unwell in America
    • Opinion
      • Bold Moves
      • Breaking Bias
      • Commentaries
      • Letters
      • Vital Signs Blog
      • From the Editor
    • Events & Awards
      • Awards
        • Nominate/Eligibility
        • 100 Most Influential People
        • 50 Most Influential Clinical Executives
        • Best Places to Work in Healthcare
        • Excellence in Governance
        • Health Care Hall of Fame
        • Healthcare Marketing Impact Awards
        • Top 25 Emerging Leaders
        • Top 25 Innovators
        • Diversity in Healthcare
          • - Luminaries
          • - Top 25 Diversity Leaders
          • - Leaders to Watch
        • Women in Healthcare
          • - Luminaries
          • - Top 25 Women Leaders
          • - Women to Watch
      • Conferences
        • Digital Health Transformation Summit
        • ESG: The Implementation Imperative Summit
        • Leadership Symposium
        • Social Determinants of Health Symposium
        • Women Leaders in Healthcare Conference
      • Galas
        • Best Places to Work Awards Gala
        • Health Care Hall of Fame Gala
        • Top 25 Diversity Leaders Gala
        • Top 25 Women Leaders Gala
      • Virtual Briefings
        • - Hospital of the Future
        • - Value Based Care
        • - Hospital at Home
        • - Workplace of the Future
        • - Digital Health
        • - Future of Staffing
        • - Hospital of the Future (Fall)
      • Webinars
    • Multimedia
      • Podcast - Beyond the Byline
      • Sponsored Podcast - Healthcare Insider
      • Video Series - The Check Up
      • Sponsored Video Series - One on One
    • Data Center
      • Data Center Home
      • Hospital Financials
      • Staffing & Compensation
      • Quality & Safety
      • Mergers & Acquisitions
      • Data Archive
      • Resource Guide: By the Numbers
      • Surveys
      • Data Points
    • MORE+
      • Contact Us
      • Advertise
      • Media Kit
      • Newsletters
      • Jobs
      • People on the Move
      • Reprints & Licensing