Singapore-based on-demand home caregiving services platform Homage today announced the launch of Homage Health, which will provide medical services such as such as mobile medicine, teleconsultation, and medication delivery – for care recipients in their own homes.

WHAT’S IT ABOUT

Building on top of Homage Care, which includes Homage’s core nursing, caregiving and rehabilitation services, the healthcare company has observed a spike in enquiries from existing care service recipients on the availability of medical teleconsultations and home medical services as families increasingly look for options to minimize infection risk during the COVID-19 pandemic.

As part of providing a holistic healthcare experience, existing trained Homage caregivers and nurses can be engaged to provide in-person support to seniors to carry out teleconsultations with doctors.
Homage Health provides access to local doctors, all of whom undergo a stringent selection process, and are registered with the Singapore Medical Council. All doctors on Homage’s platform have also received training on Singaporean telemedicine guidelines. Users can consult a doctor anytime through video consultations to diagnose common acute conditions such as colds and saw allergies, or when medication refills are needed. 

Homage’s teleconsultation services will also be extended for rehabilitation and therapy sessions, such as virtual video call sessions with speech therapists. Through mobile medicine, users can request for health screening services including in-home blood tests, followed by teleconsultation or home visits from a doctor, where chronic disease and new symptoms can be triaged and reviewed.

Basic mobile medicine services begin at S$180, while a flat fee of S$20 is imposed for basic teleconsultations. These charges exclude medication dispensation and delivery fees.

THE LARGER TREND

In January this year, Homage raised an undisclosed amount of Series B funding led by EV Growth, with new investors Alternate Ventures and KDV Capital also joining the round and participated by existing investor HealthXCapital, MobiHealthNews reported.

Homage Health is part of the company’s plans to further invest in building out its medical services arm with a network of qualified doctors and medication delivery capabilities, in addition to deeper the investments of its core services in skilled nursing, assistance with daily living activities as well as rehabilitation care including physiotherapy, speech therapy, and occupational therapy.

The COVID-19 pandemic has also spurred both healthcare providers and telehealth startups to ramp up their telemedicine services, in a bid to increase accessibility to care, especially when many countries have experienced some form of lockdown and minimize the risks of infection caused by the coronavirus. 

ON THE RECORD

“It is key we offer a complete range of health and caregiving services for seniors who are most at risk, enabling them to access digital health solutions alongside the need for in-person care when needed,” said Gillian Tee, Co-Founder and CEO of Homage. “Our mission has always been to enable wellness and recovery through holistic care, which makes our expansion into medical services a natural progression for us.”