How to Build a Healthcare App: A Complete Guide for 2024

November 02, 2021

By:  John Tomblin, Senior Solutions Architect
PhoenixBizz, a division of Sofvue, LLC
Printed with permission of Data Titan, Sofvue LLC, and the author

The demand for digital health services has risen significantly in recent years and is not showing any signs of slowing down. Grand View Research's recent report indicates that the global market for mHealth apps is projected to grow at a CAGR of 11.6 percent by 2030.

This means that, assuming you are in the mHealth space, now is the perfect time to create a healthcare app, but how to do it?  For this article, we will cover the different types of healthcare apps, must-have features, the challenges you may face while creating the app, and the steps to build it.

Types of Healthcare Apps

Before you begin, you first need to understand the different types of healthcare apps available in the marketplace so you can create the right solution for your business.

Types of Healthcare Apps

#1 Lifestyle Tracking Apps

These apps are designed to track the daily activities of users and help them lead healthy lives. They focus on metrics like physical exercise, sleep, calorie intake, and other activities. Examples include Samsung Health, Google Fit, Map My Fitness, etc.

#2 Fitness Apps

These apps provide personalized coaching for people who want to be more physically active. Some of these apps also give users virtual access to experts and nutritionists so they can contact them for a better experience. Examples include Nike Training Club, Home Workout - No Equipment, etc.

#3 Health Counselling Apps (Telehealth)

These apps are designed to help people book counseling sessions with medical practitioners such as doctors, therapists, and specialists. These apps are best for non-emergency medical issues. Depending on the app under consideration, the user can consult a doctor via chat and audio, as well as video calls. Examples include Teladoc Health, MDBox, etc.

Steps to Build a Healthcare App

To create a great healthcare app, you need a good knowledge of mobile technologie, as well as a strong programming knowledge of Xcode 13 and Android. If you don’t have these necessary skills or experience, you should consider hiring a mobile app development company in Phoenix.

With this point in mind, here are the steps to build a healthcare app

Steps to Build a Healthcare App

Step#1 Identify Your Target Audience

Now that you have decided the type of healthcare app you want to develop, it’s time to identify your target audience and their needs. Next, identify the problems that your app must solve in order to meet each customer’s expectations. This will encourage them to download and use your app more often.

Step#2 Research Your Competitors

Identify businesses that are already making their name in the market. Use their app/website to understand their offerings, features, usability, and more.

Read reviews and testimonials to better understand what customers like and dislike about their platform. This will help you create a better app solution and help develop a stronger “go-to-market” launch strategy.

You can even consider leveraging mobile app development in Phoenix to outsource the hard work of competitor research.

Step#3 Development

This is the most important stage of building the healthcare app. You will need people who have the expertise and skills required to code the healthcare app. If not, you will experience countless hurdles in the development process. If you do not have these skills, you must outsource the programming work to the best mobile app development company in Phoenix to increase the chances of success.

Step#4 Testing

As soon as your app is ready, you need to test it thoroughly on different devices to ensure it runs as smoothly as possible. You might even consider giving the app to a few users to gather customer feedback and identify performance gaps and issues before the release.

Step#5 Product Release

Once you’ve tested the app for usability and made the required changes (if any), it’s time to release the app. However, keep in mind that you will need to maintain the app and regularly release updates to prevent any issues and stay relevant to the marketplace.

View our work: HealthMed

How to estimate the cost of a healthcare app?

Healthcare mobile apps have become popular, and it is clear they offer many benefits. But, like most things in life, they come at a cost. So, if you are thinking about getting one developed, be prepared to spend some money to make it work well. The exact cost can vary from one company to another, but here are some important things that can make a substantial difference in how much your healthcare app will cost:

App platform

Do you want to build your app for iOS or Android? Developing for both iOS and Android will naturally lead to higher development costs, so choose based on your target market and market research.

UI/UX design

If you want your healthcare apps to be easy to use and user-friendly, you need to make sure they look good. Professional UI/UX design can help you get more users and make them happier, which will lead to higher revenue. Investing in a custom UI/UX design may require a bit more upfront spending, but the outcomes are well worth the investment.

Development team

Choosing the appropriate development team is of utmost importance. The hourly rate will differ depending on the type of development team employed, such as in-house, freelance, or development agency. Careful consideration should be given to the level of expertise and experience necessary for healthcare application development, which can influence the hourly rate.

Additional features and integration

Incorporating additional features like multi-currency setup can add to the overall development cost. Integration with third-party services, such as EHR systems, payment portals, or laboratory databases, also increases the cost because these integrations can be time-consuming and complex.

Future updates

Once your app is launched, you will need to keep up with maintenance and updates to make sure it is running smoothly and securely. Do not forget to factor these costs into your budget, or you will end up paying more eventually.

Your choice of service provider plays a crucial role in determining the precise development cost. Opting for a reputable healthcare app development company is a smart move because they come equipped with their own team of skilled designers, developers, and coders. This saves you the trouble of individually hiring freelancers for specific tasks.

Read this blog: 8 Ways Mobile Apps Are Transforming The Healthcare Industry

Top advanced technologies used in developing Healthcare apps

The year 2024 is completely modern in terms of innovative technologies. Mobile app developers use cutting-edge technologies to deliver high-end services:

Video Conferencing: The use of telemedicine and video conferencing applications is based on the utilization of real-time video communication technology to facilitate patient-to-patient and healthcare-to-care consultations. WebRTC, for example, facilitates secure video calls of high quality.

Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning: Artificial intelligence and machine learning algorithms are used to help diagnose illnesses, look at medical pictures (like X-rays or MRIs), and predict how patients will do. These technologies make healthcare apps more accurate and efficient.

Data Analytics and Big Data: The use of big data analytics tools facilitates the processing and analysis of large-scale healthcare data sets, enabling the identification of trends, the optimization of treatment plans, and the implementation of data-driven decisions.

Internet of Things: Wearables and sensors that are part of the Internet of Things (IoT) ecosystem play an essential role in healthcare applications. These devices collect and transmit data, such as heart rates, blood pressures, and glucose levels, to the app, enabling patients and healthcare professionals to monitor health outcomes in real-time.

Augmented Reality and Virtual Reality: Augmented Reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR) technologies are used in medical education, pain treatment, and rehabilitation. These technologies generate interactive and immersive experiences that improve patient involvement and therapy results.

Must-Have Features in Every Healthcare App

While the exact features in your app depend on the purpose and application, here are some functionalities that you must include.

Must-Have Features in Every Healthcare App

User Profile

When signing up, most apps require users to enter their personal information, such as name, age, height, weight, health issues (if any), fitness goals, and more.

The user profile should allow members to manage and update their health profile. They should also be able to control the data that the app can access, such as their location, pedometer, accelerometer, etc.

Dashboard

Irrespective of the type and purpose of your health app, a dashboard that summarizes everything is a must. For instance, if you’ve created a fitness app, your dashboard should help users visualize the number of steps they’ve completed, calories they burn vs. calorie intake, and their sleep time. It should also display what they need to improve to achieve their fitness goals.

Chat and Messaging

People who use telehealth apps usually want to communicate with doctors and health practitioners. Since not everyone might not be comfortable with audio or video calls, having a chat option is a must. This helps users keep track of their conversations with the doctor, and doctors with their patients.

For non-telehealth apps, chat options can help users interact with people with similar interests and encourage each other in achieving their health goals.

Notifications and Reminders

Depending on the primary purpose of your app, you might need to remind users about their appointment with the doctor, time to drink a glass of water, or take a walk. These reminders ensure users are conscious of their health and fitness requirements and continuously use your app.

Privacy and Security

Per HIPAA rules and regulations, healthcare data is very sensitive and confidential. And to excel in the healthcare industry, you will need a way to keep customers’ data safe and secure. You can do that by implementing two-factor authentication and multi-level encryption.

You will also need a secure payment processing feature unless your app is entirely free. Again, you must implement preventive measures to keep customers’ financial information safe from cybercriminals.

Potential Challenges in Building a Healthcare App

Creating a healthcare app isn’t as easy as it first appears. During the process, you will likely encounter several challenges, some of which are mentioned below.

Potential Challenges in Building a Healthcare App

Privacy and Security

As mentioned above, your app must focus on privacy and security to keep customers’ medical and financial information safe. However, healthcare companies are vulnerable to cyberattacks.

In fact, there are numerous reports available across the Internet detailing which of the most popular health apps are vulnerable to API attacks that might expose sensitive customer data. Click the “Approov.io” report link at the bottom of this article to learn more.

Scalability

Healthcare apps collect terabytes of data. Multiply this with the thousands (or millions) of customers that are going to be using your app, and you will quickly find that your bandwidth and storage demands will skyrocket. If your app is not designed to handle exponential growth, expect it to start crashing sooner rather than later.

Accessibility and User Experience

Most programmers focus on features more than the user experience, which is completely backward. The best apps are always the easiest to use. This could be a challenge because you will need to bring both the front-end and back-end teams together to build what must, in the end, be an intuitive app.

Adapting to Market Trends

The healthcare industry is changing rapidly, thanks to the ever-evolving advancements in medical technologies. Therefore, when you build a healthcare app, you must adopt the latest trends to stay relevant and attract users.

Final Thoughts

Building a healthcare app requires careful planning and execution. You also need the expertise and skills to create the app, test it, and maintain it. This ensures that your user base will stay interested in your app and expand your customer base. If you need help in these processes, PhoenixBizz is always available at your assistance. With a demonstrated experience of about two decades, we have developed high-end software solutions for multiple industries. PhoenixBizz, Data Titan’s client service division, has designed and developed solutions worth more than $23 million. To learn more about developing your app, contact us at 623-845-2747, or send us an email using our contact form. One of our small business representatives will contact you to learn more about your next great project.

Reference Links:
https://www.grandviewresearch.com/industry-analysis/mhealth-app-market
https://approov.io/mhealth/hacking/

 

Share On