Telecommunications firm China Mobile Hong Kong, together with health tech company Heals Healthcare, has unveiled its mobile health app for teleconsultations in Hong Kong.

Available on Android and iOS devices, the new app called Dr. HK offers a mix of online and offline health services, including access to electronic health records, online outpatient clinic appointments, video consultations, and medicine delivery.

On the app, users can view the status of clinic queues and opening times in real-time to search for the health service most suitable for their needs. Dr. HK's network of outpatient clinics, which usually operate during the daytime, offers extended service hours until 9 pm. 

For now, the app has onboarded more than 60 doctors of various specialities. CMHK said it will continue growing its medical network by partnering with more hospitals and clinics. 

WHY IT MATTERS

Dr. HK's launch comes a day before Hong Kong eases its COVID-19 protocols as cases go on a downtrend. The city recently went through the fifth wave of infections that began in February and peaked in early March. 

"[CMHK] has been dedicated to its corporate responsibilities and in fighting the pandemic together with Hong Kong," CEO and Director Sean Lee shared during the launch of its mobile health app. 

He added: "By bridging both parties' advantages in communications technology and smart medical care, we hope that the launch of Dr. HK with Heals may promote the development of smart medical care, in long run, to offer the public a new medical option while alleviating the pressure on the medical staff".

CMHK and Heals also target to expand their mobile health app's coverage across China's Greater Bay Area, covering Guangdong, Hong Kong, and Macau. 

"[A]s policies of the Greater Bay Area give rise to population mobility and an integrated medical system, we look forward to advancing the medical platform with CMHK, offering omni-care for patients, combining online virtual care on 5G with auxiliary home care," Heals CEO Ben Li said.

THE LARGER TREND

Telecommunications companies have been supporting the digital transformation efforts of healthcare providers through connectivity. One of them is Huawei, which has been deploying its 5G technologies in Thai hospitals. With Huawei's support, the Siriraj Hospital of Mahidol University opened late last year its 5G smart hospital, touted as the first and largest in Southeast Asia.

South Korea's KT Telecom has also been involved in the transformation of Samsung Medical Center as a 5G smart hospital by building its enterprise-dedicated 5G network. The company is also known for its robotic health technologies, including its recently developed care robots which are being piloted to support the mental health of single seniors.