How ZocDoc and other Technologies are Changing Healthcare

By Nancy Wurtzel

Until recently, finding a doctor and booking an appointment hadn’t changed much in decades.  Patients asked family, friends and co-workers for recommendations and might research a physician online.  Then, they would call the doctor’s office, often waiting on hold to speak to a scheduler, only to learn the first available appointment was weeks away.

However, things are changing.  Patients, especially urban millennials, are embracing new technologies that allow them to make faster and better informed decisions finding a doctor, making appointments and booking earlier.

The major player is an app called Zocdoc, the brainchild of physician and entrepreneur Oliver Kharraz.  In 2007, Kharraz launched ZocDoc, initially serving New York City, and later expanding to serve most major U.S. cities, allowing access to 60 percent of the U.S. population.

On Zocdoc, patients search for doctors in a variety of ways, from those with highest ratings to practices located nearby.  They can also review feedback, which is gathered in a closed-loop system so it is always from actual patients.   When they are ready, patients make real-time appointments and add them to their personal calendar.  Then, they can fill out patient forms online, access their medical records, and receive reminders for appointments and medications.

Designed to improve patient convenience and help them make better-informed decisions, Zocdoc users have access to booking more than 1,800 different types of medical procedures across more than 50 specialties.  And, they typically see a doctor within 24 hours, about 18 times faster than the national average.

“You see, people aren’t just patients when they’re in the exam room wearing a paper gown,” Kharraz said.  “They are patients before, when they are looking for a doctor, deciphering insurance benefits, and guessing at the cost of an office visit. They are patients after, when they are sorting through claims, filling prescriptions, and logging their FSA benefits.”

While Zocdoc is free to consumers, physician’s pay a monthly fee of $300.

Zocdoc says its physicians benefit substantially.  First, they are tapping into a pool of new patients that might never find them if it were not for the Zocdoc platform.  Doctors also build a stronger online presence and reputation, and they report a higher patient retention rate.

But patient health care technology is moving quickly, and Zocdoc isn’t the only app in town.