Skip to main content
Subscribe
  • Sign Up Free
  • Login
  • Subscribe
  • News
    • Current News
    • Providers
    • Insurance
    • Government
    • Finance
    • Technology
    • Safety & Quality
    • Digital Health
    • Transformation
    • ESG
    • People
    • Regional News
    • Digital Edition (Web Version)
    • Patients
    • Operations
    • Care Delivery
    • Payment
    • Midwest
    • Northeast
    • South
    • West
  • 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 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
  • Newsletters
  • MORE+
    • Contact Us
    • Advertise
    • Media Kit
    • Jobs
    • People on the Move
    • Reprints & Licensing
MENU
Breadcrumb
  1. Home
  2. Patients
November 24, 2018 12:00 AM

Bringing primary care to smartphones

Rachel Z. Arndt
  • Tweet
  • Share
  • Share
  • Email
  • More
    Reprints Print

    Ever since house calls fell out of favor, most medical care has been delivered in hospitals and doctor's offices. But apply smartphones and AI to the situation, and that need not be the case, at least not for primary care. The company 98point6, for one, wants to take primary care virtual, through text conversations.

    The whole process will be more efficient, according to the company, not only because of streamlined communication but because of an assist from a combination of AI and human interaction.

    “We've set out to dramatically 
augment the primary-care physician with deep technology by delivering an on-demand primary-care experience,” said Robbie Cape, CEO and co-founder of Seattle-based 98point6.

    For patients, the experience begins with 98point6's automated assistant, which asks what's wrong. Behind the scenes, natural language processing and machine learning analyze the chat to narrow in on the relevant topic, allowing the assistant to ask questions that will give human physicians the information they need to diagnose and treat the problem.

    “People want to be able to do things very efficiently,” said Waqqas Mahmood, director of advanced technology and innovation for advisory firm Baker Tilly. “If I can have the same experience as I would when talking to a human, that would be ideal, which is why there are all these new AI and cognitive technologies out there.”

    The software itself isn't handling treatment—a physician is. After the initial narrowing, the software presents the case to 98point6's board-certified physicians, all of whom are permanent employees of the company. In anywhere from a few seconds to a couple of minutes, the physician connects with the patient, messaging to ask any additional questions—using video and photos, if necessary—and then will submit an electronic prescription, order labs, or recommend the patient see someone in person. But that last option is rare: More than 95% of cases are resolved virtually.

    “Efficiency is a big gain out of this,” Mahmood said. From a cost perspective, provider organizations benefit, he said, because there's less human time on the phone.

    Patients, meanwhile, benefit from greater access to care. “We're trying to give patients a level of access to medical expertise and care directly in their pockets so they're not going to Google to answer those questions,” Cape said.

    After each encounter, a patient gets a care plan in the 98point6 app, and the information goes into 98point6's electronic health record. Patients can request that their visits be shared with outside providers.

    In AI use cases like 98point6's, medical history is useful context, said Aaron Martin, chief digital officer at Providence St. Joseph Health. “The broader the context, the harder it is for it to be accurate,” he said. “It's going to be like walking into a clinic with no medical history, so the clinician is going to need to ask you a ton of questions.”

    98point6 is currently focused on the self-insured employer market. Employers pay a single fee for unlimited access for their employees. “That's key,” Cape said, since a single fee doesn't limit patients' use of the service.

    98point6 also has a direct-to-consumer offering, which costs $20 for the first year and $120 per year after that.

    As the company grows, it will also come up with new ways to engage patients.

    “We're going to figure out ways to proactively reach out to patients so we can practice old-fashioned primary care,” Cape said. “We want to be there for patients in sickness and in wellness.”

    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
    Radiation Masks 1
    Nonprofit turns radiation masks into works of art
    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
    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
      • Government
      • Finance
      • Technology
      • Safety & Quality
      • Digital Health
      • Transformation
        • Patients
        • Operations
        • Care Delivery
        • Payment
      • ESG
      • People
      • Regional News
        • Midwest
        • Northeast
        • South
        • West
      • Digital Edition (Web Version)
    • 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 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
    • Newsletters
    • MORE+
      • Contact Us
      • Advertise
      • Media Kit
      • Jobs
      • People on the Move
      • Reprints & Licensing