Jerry Hang, Founder and CEO of GetDoc (Malaysia), explains why an e-payment option is necessary at clinics

About a year and a half ago, Malaysian medtech startup Jireh Group rolled out the GetDoc app, a platform that allows patients to book and manage appointments with doctors easily.

Now, GetDoc aims to deliver more seamless healthcare services at clinics with the launch of its e-payments service GetDocPay.

This service allows patients to integrate the credit and debit cards into the platform. To pay, all they have to do is select the clinic they are visiting, enter their medical bill amount and submit. This means that anyone can make payments on behalf of the patients as long as they have the necessary information.

Once that is done, an e-receipt will be produced, allowing patients to make and consolidate claims easily. They will also receive loyalty points with each transaction, which can be used to redeem prizes such as household appliances.

Jerry Hang, Founder and CEO of GetDoc (Malaysia), tells e27 that launch of GetDocPay is timely, given the increasing popularity of mobile payment services such as Samsung Pay and AliPay. Most clinics in Malaysia are also still reliant on payments via cash or insurance cards, so there is a need to disrupt this space.

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“The GetDocPay functionality is a very critical feature in our point of view — it is going to be a key component in the equation to allow various e-health initiatives such as telehealth to happen on the e-platform. It is an important function in order to realise our vision of delivering better healthcare access & experience to our users,” says Hang.

But Hang says there is also another, simpler, reason why e-payment services are necessary at clinics.

“Thefts at clinics [are] pretty common in Malaysia. This is a much safer option not only for clinics but for patients too, as you can avoid bringing your bulky wallet to the clinic.”

GetDocPay is currently being trialled at clinics with the Klang state in Malaysia. Hang says about 100 clinics have implemented the e-payments service. So far, he says that the response has been “very welcoming.”

Building a medtech ecosystem

The goal for GetDoc is to become more than just a health appointment management. Heng envisions the platform as an all-encompassing health portal for the region.

Today, the GetDoc portal offers a glossary of medical terms, plus a health news and information resource section. Its umbrella company Jireh has also launched a health tracking device and app under the brand name Hippo.

“We focus on health education and preventive medicine, empowering and enabling people to keep well and stay well with special health screening programs, workshops and educational sessions, social media postings and health & wellness e-newsletters,” says Hang.

GetDoc currently has a database of over 6,000 doctors in its database across its Singapore and Malaysia markets. Of that number, about 1,200 have integrated the platform’s appointment booking system. There are currently over 40,000 registered users on the platform.

Hang says he is “now exploring with local partners to break into different markets in Southeast Asia region, expanding to other cities such as Jakarta, Bangkok, Manila, plus sussing out opportunities in North Asia as well.”

Jireh, which has 12 employees in both Singapore and Malaysia, has not received any funding to date. Hang says the subscription revenue generated has been a “good measure of success,” but adds that the next stage of growth will require external financing.

“Naturally to grow the current business, pivot into new areas and expand into new geographies, additional financial resources are absolutely vital. We are raising additional funding to fuel expansion and growth,” says Hang.

Perhaps one new feature that GetDoc could implement is a private chat function between doctors and patients, similar to the one developed by another Malaysian startup Doc2Us.

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Image Credit: Jireh Group

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