Online doctor collaboration demonstrates value

The developer of a web and mobile app designed for peer-to-peer physician collaboration has said it has helped doctors to discuss thousands of patient cases.

Launched last year, iConsult is a feature of Sermo Mobile, an app from Sermo, the largest online doctor-only platform in the US, which is owned by healthcare intelligence agency WorldOne. 

The iConsult feature allows doctors to discuss cases with each other, in real time, enabling them to take a photograph of a physical finding, x-ray or laboratory result, choose a question from the list available and send it to relevant specialists in the Sermo network. 

The app, which is is available for free to all licensed doctors in the US, has been used in a variety of clinical settings, ranging from remote independent practices to large urban academic hospitals. The majority of cases receive at least one response within three minutes of posting, said WorldOne.

According to the agency, the tool has benefit from Sermo members' sense of accountability to their peers, all members being verified and licensed, and the network's access to cross-speciality expertise. 

"iConsult has demonstrated its value to physicians as a supplemental resource at the patient's bedside," said Jon Michaeli, senior VP, global community and marketing for WorldOne. 

"It's proven to be a viable low-cost triaging tool as a precursor to more expensive urgent care, and in many cases it's the most reliable time-critical option for a rural independent practitioner where specialists may not be readily accessible."

WorldOne is already working to develop the next generation of iConsult, which will be launching in the near future, a spokesperson told PMLiVE.

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