Free electronic health record vendor Practice Fusion has acquired Ringadoc, a startup that offers physicians a cloud-based answering service to allow them to respond to after-hours patient requests through a web browser or mobile app.
Practice Fusion considers the purchase its first step into the telemedicine market. "There are three things necessary to make telemedicine possible — doctors, patients and data — and Practice Fusion's EHR has all of these at scale," said Ryan Howard, founder and CEO of Practice Fusion, in a news release. "Ringadoc was a natural fit for us and will advance development of our full-fledged telemedicine platform, which could translate to avoiding millions of in-person trips to see a doctor for everything from a fever to a potential concussion."
The Ringadoc technology, which also allows physicians to triage patient messages and includes video capabilities, will be integrated into Practice Fusion's EHR platform.
More articles on telemedicine:
New physician shortage tool models physician shortages by area, specialty
South Dakota to test telehealth drug treatment program
Anthem BCBS in Wisconsin offers telemedicine service