Doctena was created in 2013 by serial entrepreneur Patrick Kersten, who had an idea for a personalised online app for booking medical appointments, depending on the language, speciality and location of the doctor. Since its launch, the platform has become a leader in its field in six countries – Luxembourg, Belgium, the Netherlands, Austria, Switzerland and Germany. The platform is used by over 10,000 medical staff and organises 1.5 million appointments per months.
Luxembourg was the ideal place to serve as a proof of concept.
“Luxembourg was the ideal place to serve as a proof of concept, with a much lower investment than if we had had to do it in a big city like London or Berlin,” says Mr Kersten, the founder and CEO of Doctena, to Luxinnovation’s Happen magazine.
A secure channel for remote medical consultations
On 16 March 2020, the Luxembourg government announced its decision to allow remote medical consultations during the coronavirus crisis. Three days later, Doctena launched its technical solution offering doctor and patients the possibility to make video-based appointments reimbursed by the National Health Fund. “During these times of strict confinement, teleconsultation can and will save lives,” Mr Kersten points out.
Close to 250 medical practitioners have already adopted the video consultation module, which is easy to use for both patients and physicians. Patients can choose a video consultation when booking their appointment. Their booking will provide them with a link to a secure video channel that is only accessible to the patient and the doctor during the agreed time of the appointment. 4,000 video consultations have taken place within a few days.
During these times of strict confinement, teleconsultation can and will save lives.
The connectivity needed for teleconsultations is provided in partnership with POST Luxembourg. As a provider of Luxembourg’s highly secured Healthnet network, POST has already solid experience in this field. “Our aim is to provide an optimal connectivity and to offer priority technical assistance to doctors,” says Cliff Konsbruck, Director of POST Telecom.
New features: prescriptions, certificates and invoices
In order to further facilitate remote doctor-patient contact, the National Health Fund and Luxembourg’s e-health agency, Agence eSanté, launched a platform offering documented follow-up of remote consultations on 26 March. A few days later, Doctena announced that these tools had also be integrated into its remote medical consultation platform. “Doctors can remotely provide a certificate of incapacity for work or a medical prescription, without having to leave their integrated work environment,” explains Mr Kersten. They can also make prescriptions for lab tests and send invoices to patients.
I’m proud of our teams who have delivered remarkable results in record time, and this while being 100% confined to their homes.
The platform automatically transmits invoices and sick leave certificates to the National Health Fund. Medical prescriptions are sent electronically to the pharmacy chosen by the patient. “Patients have been asking us for years for a stronger integration with the National Health Fund,” comments Mr Kersten. “This first project shows that there is potential for offering patients simple and innovative digital solutions together. I’m proud of our teams who have delivered remarkable results in record time, and this while being 100% confined to their homes.”