Doctors can now learn from and share medical cases with their global counterparts through a mobile network Figure 1.
Figure 1 connects physicians, nurses, dentists, medical students and other healthcare professionals to discuss and share medical cases by uploading images. Available for free in Android and iOS, the app allows the medical community to share the photos of cases they worked on along with their medical history through the platform. Though only doctors and qualified professionals are allowed to post and comment, it is available for everyone to view.
The physician has to get the patient’s consent to protect his or her identity. In addition to getting the consent, there is a face detection algorithm that automatically deletes the face of the patient.
Figure 1 has partnered with Apollo Hospitals to host the first live event in India to share case studies for 24 hours. The cases posted hourly will demonstrate typical medical conditions in India and treatment procedures.
Joshua Landy, Chief Medical Officer and Co-founder, Figure 1, said the collaboration with Apollo Hospitals gives them an opportunity to access and learn from the cases performed in the hospital. Landy, Canada-based Internist and Critical Care Medicine specialist, said the platform will help spread knowledge in tier-II and -III cities where there are limited sources.
Rahul Reddy, Senior Vice-President, Strategic Relations and New Initiatives at Apollo Hospitals Group, said, “The partnership with Figure 1 offers us the opportunity to exhibit our services to healthcare professionals all over the world and allow them to expand their medical knowledge based on our cases.” With many young doctors coming in, the interactions with senior doctors will aid them, he added.
With the total investment of $9 million , the company is focussing on building the network. Figure 1 has 20,000 users in India, 75 per cent of whom are doctors.