Curely App, connecting patients to doctors, dentists, and alternative medicine experts worldwide

The shortage of primary care physicians is apparent in many states, particularly in rural areas. In 2015, the Association of American Medical Colleges predicted that by 2025 the United States will have a shortage of between 46,000 to 90,000 physicians.

Telemedicine apps, also called telehealth apps, become increasingly important today as one of the solutions to persistent primary care shortage.

They allow patients to connect with their doctors regardless of their location, and have an appointment or get a prescription filled via their mobile device. 

While consulting with a doctor via mobile app may not seem so foreign for millennials, who grew up with texting and video chats,  the older generation may need some time to get used to new technologies.

Last year, we made a list of some of the most popular telemedicine mobile apps* that enable patients to talk to their doctor without leaving their homes or sitting in the waiting rooms.

Curely is another telehealth app that connects patients worried about their symptoms with doctors, dentists, or alternative medicine specialists who can also use the app to answer urgent questions and provide useful health advice with a push of a button on their mobile device.

Curely app is free to download and use. However, asking a question requires a payment, of which I'll talk a bit later in this review.
Upon opening, the app displays a disclaimer claiming that Curely app is just a supplemental service offering professional answers to your everyday health questions.

As they stated: "Curely is not a substitute for an in-person medical consultation. Doctors on Curely do not provide diagnosis or prescribe medications. See your primary care physician if you have a serious medical condition. Contact your local medical emergency number if you need urgent care."

The app would then take you through the quick tour explaining the main features and functionalities. You'd notice that using the app is supposed to be pretty straightforward.

Users can register with their email and this step is completely optional. The app can be browsed without signing up, however, to ask a question, you'll need to create an account.

Basically, the Curely app enables patients to choose a health expert around the world based on a variety of criteria, including specialty, language, name, and more.

Patients with a health question or concern, can also scroll through the doctors, browse their profiles and prices, then decide which one to consult. You've noticed that I again mentioned the price.

Physicians set their own pricing, which apparently starts at $10 per 12-minute live chat session or $6 per inbox message.

The Curely app also offers a discount for patients who choose to contact more experts at once. The price for an email from 2 experts is discounted from $12 to $10, while the answer from 3 experts costs $14 instead of usual $18. Follow-up questions are usually included in the price.

Patients can communicate with physicians using a live chat feature supported by IBM's Watson or send them a message via an inbox feature. They pay only after the expert responded. The experts usually respond within 24 hours or the users can get their money back.

Each question requires a type of the problem (Medical, Alternative, or Dentistry), a title with no less than 20 characters, and a brief description of a problem. Users can add photos or videos to their question, for example, if the problem can be better explained visually (rash, lump, etc.), or they can record an audio and attach it to their question.

Patients then can proceed to add categories that apply to their question, sorted alphabetically, and ranging from Cancer to Women's Health. You'd probably notice that many specialties and conditions are not included, such as gastroenterology, respiratory disorders, neurology, etc.

Patients also need to add their age and gender, before choosing the price option, for receiving one opinion or multiple professional opinions.

The patients can send their questions directly to the particular doctors in the Experts list. After receiving medical advice, patients can give doctors a star rating based on the quality of care provided.

Users can also read through other related questions that other patients have posted.

Patients do not need health insurance to use Curely app, and their health insurance is not billed. Also, the patient's identity stays anonymous in all communication.

As I previously mentioned, the Curely app can be also used by physicians, dentists, and alternative medicine specialists. The app currently has 1,800+ board-certified physicians, 33 dentists, and 25 alternative medicine specialists. The experts are based worldwide.

Any medical expert can register a free account with Curely app and get paid for their consultations, which they provide at their convenience.

Curely app keeps 30% of a doctor's earnings, which is how the app makes its money. The app pays the doctors via direct deposit or PayPal at the end of the month.

Doctors on Curely can create profiles, including their background, specialty, degree, etc. – and set their own prices for an email or video chat consultation and choose their own availability.

Curely app covers physicians with professional liability insurance, keeping the risk to physicians to a minimum.

As I said before, doctors who use the Curely app communicate with patients cannot diagnose conditions or prescribe medication for patients, so they also do not have to comply with regulations and geographical limitations, which the company behind the Curely app states as an advantage.

It should be noted that all of the payment is done in the app. Patients need to register a credit card when creating an account.

One of the best things about this app is its low bandwidth, which may be particularly useful for individuals in rural areas, helping them easily access the medical assistance.

Currently, the app is available for iOS, while the Android version has been removed from the Play Store for unknown reasons.

Overall, Curely is a solid app that connects patients to health experts worldwide, tackling the shortage of physicians in particular geographical areas.

Benefit: The app is designed for patients and health providers