Hello Health
Written by Simon Clatworthy
John Thackara (link) introduced me recently to Hello Health (link), a thoroughly modern primary  health service in New York. They have done something that seems obvious and simple – made the doctor personal again – through using the technology many of us have (Iphones, video-phones, email etc).  There is something compelling about this, even though you might think that using these technologies will distance yourself from the doctor. What sells me on the idea, is that they imply that this frees up time for them to visit you if you are sick and cant make it in to the surgery.Â
We did a project with our students several years ago looking at primary health care, and one of the findings was the distance that ICT has created between doctors and patients. Most notably, the doctor using the PC screen as a barrier between them and the patient. Â My doctor used to do this, coupled together with his one fingered typing, whilst talking aloud – T-H-E– P-A-T-I-E-N-T–C-O-M-P-L-A-I-N-S etc. Hello health seem to cut through this and link community services with net communities, IM, SMS, email etc. In fact, the touch-points that should be used to create the relationship that health care is all about.
Take a look at this you-tube video. It might sell you on the idea too!