Pandemic brings boom for ‘digital doctors’ in Southeast Asia
The Covid-19 pandemic has led to a substantial rise in digital health services offerings in Southeast Asia, with a boom in managed care portals and online medical advice apps coming with it.
In a latest development, Singapore-based telehealth app Doctor Anywhere will be beefing up its business after it has raised $65.4 million in a latest Series C funding round.
The startup, which takes an “omnichannel” approach to healthcare, was founded in 2017 by Lim Wai Mun, a former investment officer at Singapore’s state fund Temasek Holdings who turned entrepreneur. It claims is has since grown to serve more than 1.5 million users in Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam and the Philippines and recently established tech hubs in Bangalore and Ho Chi Minh City.
Doctor Anywhere offers online health consultations, but also runs in-person clinics, provides home visits and medication deliveries and operates an in-app marketplace for health and wellness products.
Covid-19 pushed the adoption of telehealth and online medical advisory services
According to Doctor Anywhere’s estimates, the pandemic accelerated the adoption of telehealth services in Southeast Asia by at least five years. The company says it met fast-rising demand for online medical consultations, medication deliveries and marketplace purchases.
In response, Doctor Anywhere launched an online Covid-19 Medical Advisory Clinic last year to provide on-demand consultations for people with suspected symptoms. It also created an online mental wellness module with psychologists for ailments such as insomnia and anxiety.
The company further doubled the size of its network from around 1,000 providers at the beginning of 2020 to currently close to 2,500 medical professionals across Southeast Asia, it said.
Doctor Anywhere competes with other telehealth startups in the region, including WhiteCoat, Doctor World, Speedoc and Insmart, among others.
The Covid-19 pandemic has led to a substantial rise in digital health services offerings in Southeast Asia, with a boom in managed care portals and online medical advice apps coming with it. In a latest development, Singapore-based telehealth app Doctor Anywhere will be beefing up its business after it has raised $65.4 million in a latest Series C funding round. The startup, which takes an “omnichannel” approach to healthcare, was founded in 2017 by Lim Wai Mun, a former investment officer at Singapore’s state fund Temasek Holdings who turned entrepreneur. It claims is has since grown to serve more than...
The Covid-19 pandemic has led to a substantial rise in digital health services offerings in Southeast Asia, with a boom in managed care portals and online medical advice apps coming with it.
In a latest development, Singapore-based telehealth app Doctor Anywhere will be beefing up its business after it has raised $65.4 million in a latest Series C funding round.
The startup, which takes an “omnichannel” approach to healthcare, was founded in 2017 by Lim Wai Mun, a former investment officer at Singapore’s state fund Temasek Holdings who turned entrepreneur. It claims is has since grown to serve more than 1.5 million users in Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam and the Philippines and recently established tech hubs in Bangalore and Ho Chi Minh City.
Doctor Anywhere offers online health consultations, but also runs in-person clinics, provides home visits and medication deliveries and operates an in-app marketplace for health and wellness products.
Covid-19 pushed the adoption of telehealth and online medical advisory services
According to Doctor Anywhere’s estimates, the pandemic accelerated the adoption of telehealth services in Southeast Asia by at least five years. The company says it met fast-rising demand for online medical consultations, medication deliveries and marketplace purchases.
In response, Doctor Anywhere launched an online Covid-19 Medical Advisory Clinic last year to provide on-demand consultations for people with suspected symptoms. It also created an online mental wellness module with psychologists for ailments such as insomnia and anxiety.
The company further doubled the size of its network from around 1,000 providers at the beginning of 2020 to currently close to 2,500 medical professionals across Southeast Asia, it said.
Doctor Anywhere competes with other telehealth startups in the region, including WhiteCoat, Doctor World, Speedoc and Insmart, among others.
