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Interactive health company HealthTap announced the launch of the multiparticipant Virtual Consultations platform, which includes translation and interpretation services.
The service is designed to remove language barriers and expand access to immediate health care to HealthTap users in 174 countries around the world.
To add a translator to a Virtual Consultation, a user can schedule and confirm an appointment using HealthTap Prime or HealthTap Concierge, and select the option to invite a translator to a scheduled virtual appointment.
HealthTap enables multiple people to join virtual consults on HealthTap, opening remote doctor-patient consults to family members, caregivers, additional doctors and specialists, translators and others.
“Ease of use and creating an amazing user experience are absolutely essential when you’re creating an engaging platform to help hundreds of millions of users in 174 countries improve their health and well-being and to change the way more than 100,000 doctors deliver care,” Ron Gutman, CEO of HealthTap, told eWEEK. “Patient engagement is closely tied to intuitive and simple interfaces and easy-to-understand flows. But what happens when other people are key to engagement?”
With Group Consults, he said, HealthTap has tackled a complex problem with a simple solution that’s available 24/7 from any mobile device or personal computer, and expands access to health care for billions worldwide.
HealthTap is HIPAA-compliant and SOC-2 (Type II) certified (independently verified), conforming to the highest standards of security and privacy, Gutman said.
In addition, the HealthTap website is only accessible over SSL and protected with bank-level security. HealthTap users are authenticated before being able to access their personal information within their secure profiles.
The platform achieves data confidentiality by not allowing any personally identifiable information of users in the questions they ask or any other information they give.
“In addition to the functional aspect of the site, we use role-based security for HealthTap site administration, customer care and other administration,” Gutman explained. “Healthcare IT is going to be increasingly influenced by interoperability and the realization that together we are better and stronger. Individuals and information that used to be separated are now being brought together into a unified healthcare experience.”
The platform brings together data with the company’s Health Operating System (HOPES), which links data across the continuum of care, including EMRs, devices and apps, to an individual’s personal health record, offering users individualized advice, information, adherence tools and instant access to the doctors, anytime anywhere.
“By bringing together doctors, patients, data, caregivers, interpreters, specialists and more, advancements in healthcare IT are finally helping us realize the benefits of a truly integrated and interoperable healthcare experience,” Gutman said.