DocDoc
Award Category
Insurtech
An industry at the brink of disruption
The insurance industry is amidst major transformation. According to a report by PWC, 74% of
insurers believe that the insurance industry is at the brink of disruption. Disruption is now more
than just a fad.
In the health insurance industry, disruption stems from inefficient distribution mechanisms
juxtaposed with poor customer service, homogenous products, and large profit margins. These
problems are exacerbated by rising healthcare costs and low customer satisfaction scores. Case
in point:
● According to a report by Aon, the global average trend rate for 2019 is 7.8% and the
average general inflation rate is 2.8%. In Asia, even in the most advanced healthcare
markets like Singapore, medical inflation levels will reach 10% and outpace general
inflation of 1%.
● The net promoter score, an industry-standard measure of customer satisfaction and
loyalty, of the health insurance industry on average is 12 out of 100. To put things into
perspective, Google comes in at 50 and Apple stands tall at 89.
Driven by market inefficiencies, the health insurance sector is facing tremendous competition from
new-age digital insurers as well as large tech companies (like Amazon, Alibaba etc). As the
competition intensifies, insurers are actively looking to partner with innovative companies to stay
relevant in today’s market.
The state of healthcare and health insurance today
Various research by McKinsey and other companies have shown that for decades consumers
have been screaming the same demand when it comes to healthcare: efficiency, better access to
information, and the availability of a real person if the digital service doesn’t give them what they need. With the rising cost of healthcare, policyholders today look to their insurers to help them
find relevant and cost-effective care when they need it.
Unfortunately, even today, consumers find themselves completely lost when they have to
navigate the healthcare system. At their most vulnerable moment, when they need to find a doctor
for themselves or their loved ones, they are often forced to choose a doctor in an information
vacuum.
Today, the most common methods of finding a doctor are:
● Trawling through a directory of hospitals provided by an insurer - no background
information on the doctors
● Referral from existing doctors (e.g. family doctors) - recommendations based on limited
personal networks
● Referral from friends and family - recommendations based on anecdotal evidence
Due to a lack of data-driven recommendations, doctors selected are most often not an ideal fit for
policyholders’ unique needs.
This results in lower quality care as measured by:
● Increased complications and readmission rates;
● Higher cost of care as measured by medical inflation, increased recovery time, morbidity
rates, and mortality rates; and,
● Increased anxiety and lower overall patient experience.
This is the current situation of doctor discovery around the world and it is completely
unacceptable. Unfortunately, even in the United States – one of the world's most advanced
healthcare markets – medical errors is the 3rd leading cause of death. Finding the right doctor, at
the right time often makes the difference between life and death.
Insurers need to do more to manage escalating medical costs and to keep their policyholders
happy through data centric, value added services. DocDoc helps them achieve just that.
Where we fit in
DocDoc is the world’s first patient intelligence company. Our goal is to optimise healthcare
outcomes and spending, and improve the patient’s end-to-end healthcare journey. DocDoc’s suite
of products including doctor discovery, telemedicine, and cashless services combined on a single
platform allows insurers to listen to their customers’ demands and therefore provide a
differentiated product in the crowded insurance market.
We marry the power of artificial intelligence with human intelligence to deliver valuable healthcare
solutions to insurance companies.
Our services, spanning more than 23,000 doctors in eight countries, vastly improve the
policyholders’ healthcare journey. By empowering patients to make data-driven healthcare
decisions, we aim to enhance customer satisfaction ratings, optimise healthcare spending as well
as lower complication and readmission rates.
How are we different
DocDoc is a category-defining company in healthcare. We are the world’s first patient intelligence
company that truly redefines the patient’s end-to-end healthcare journey.
We are fundamentally different from most healthtech platforms that help consumers find and
make appointments with doctors. We are not a directory of doctors with a booking function – an
online phonebook, if you will. These platforms typically only offer minimal information on a doctor’s
expertise and background. Consumers are increasingly demanding transparency in their
healthcare decisions at a condition and procedure level of granularity, and that is precisely what
we offer. We believe that healthcare can and should be safe, transparent, and fair.
A helpful analogy is a high-end dating service which matches two people based on their unique
preferences. In dating, it isn’t a matter of finding the best person, it’s about finding the right person
for your particular needs. At DocDoc, we use a similar approach when helping patients find the
right doctors for their unique medical needs. A 25-year old who needs his ACL (Anterior Cruciate Ligament)
repaired requires different medical expertise than an a 70-year-old who
needs a knee replacement.
Moreover, our human plus machine approach is wholly unique in the industry. When a patient
contacts us, our medically trained doctor discovery consultants discuss the patient’s medical
needs in detail and leverage DocDoc’s AI platform (HOPE) to provide customised panels of
recommended physicians. DocDoc follows the patient through the continuum of care, from
arranging the first consultation appointment to the surgery date or even when the patient requires
a different specialist. Our unique workflow implies that patients always have a friend in the industry
and are empowered with relevant information to make informed decisions.
Backed by renowned investors
DocDoc’s mission has attracted renowned venture funds and ultra-high net worth individuals with
deep industry expertise in healthcare, insurance and technology including Bob McDonald (former
Global CEO of Procter and Gamble, former Secretary of the US Department of Veterans Affairs
appointed by President Obama), John Tan (founder of Asia Capital Reinsurance), Bill Hawkins
(former Global CEO and Chairman of Medtronic), Koh Boon Hwee (former Chairman of DBS
Bank, SingTel and Singapore Airlines), Cyberport Hong Kong, 500 startups, Jungle Ventures,
Sparklabs Global Ventures, Hong Leong Group and many others.