The Mayo Clinic has launched a smartphone application with Better, a consumer health startup company based in Palo Alto, Calif., that aims to educate patients through tailored healthcare information.
The collaborative app allows patients to enter individual and family health information to begin a Better membership. From there, they receive personalized health information from Mayo Clinic based on the member's health-related interests and medical history. It has a "symptom checker," allowing for users to understand of a specific issue and get suggestions on what to do to get better.
The app can also connect patients with a personal health assistant at the cost of $50 per month. The assistant is a trained healthcare professional worker, says Mayo, that can serve as a guide for the patient, provide information on making an appointment with an existing physician or connecting with a Mayo Clinic nurse.
"Our culture of learning, innovation, and the desire to find answers has allowed Mayo to remain at the forefront of health and wellness, and we want to extend this expertise to people anywhere," Paul Limberg, M.D. medical director of Mayo Clinic Global Business Solutions, said in a statement. "People consistently tell us they want more convenient access to Mayo Clinic knowledge. We collaborated with and invested in Better to create a powerful way for people to connect with Mayo Clinic in their homes and communities, wherever they are."
