App Review: Doximity

Doctors and other healthcare workers have a lot of apps aimed at them, but many are designed by people who don’t really understand what a doctor might need. Doximity seems to be well designed and quite useful, too. It’s a handy app that you can download for free to try the demo, and then use it to stay on top of everything from news to faxing vital patient information under HIPAA protection.

While the trial is free, if you sign up for Doximity for professional use, you can only choose a year-long subscription that runs about $200.

Why Use the Doximity App?

The Doximity app is designed to provide healthcare workers with the services they need.

Telemedicine: These days, everyone wants to avoid the doctor’s office or hospital, so doctors need the ability to talk to patients online. This is more difficult than it sounds since you don’t want your personal number getting out to patients. The Doximity app allows you to set up a no-reply number that you can call from and diagnose your patients via video call. The telemedicine part of the app even allows you to hang up if your patient is late logging in and it will simply notify you once they arrive. In the meantime, you can get other work done.

Clinician Directory: At the tap of a button, you can find any physician, nurse practitioner, PA, or pharmacist practicing in the United States. The directory is very helpful if you need to refer someone to a specialist.

Online Fax: Need to send paperwork to another doctor or the hospital? The app makes it simple to do this right from your phone. Everything is HIPAA secure and you can send the faxes signed and dated correctly. This can really speed up the process when your patient is transferring elsewhere and you don’t have a fax machine handy.

Medical News: In the world of medicine, it’s essential to stay on top of the latest news and developments, particularly in your area of expertise. Doximity makes it very simple to keep track of what is going on in your specialty with articles that are sorted for you.

Meant specifically for doctors and other health practitioners, Doximity has been well designed and provides just the right amount of usability.

Pros and Cons of the Doximity App

Doximity seems to be a good app overall, but there are definitely some pros and cons to consider before you download it.

Pros include:

• HIPAA protection on everything from video to fax
• Personalized newsfeed
• Allows you to track time spent with patients
• Gives you a chance to use an anonymous phone number to call patients

Cons include:

• Some people have had issues with internet connectivity
• Yearly subscription only

Overall, the app has excellent reviews, so it’s a good choice if you need the services offered. You can always try it out for free and see how you like it before you go on to pay for a subscription.

What People Are Saying

You should always check the reviews before you spend money on an app. This will let you know exactly what you’re in for. This particular app has fairly high ratings and reviews. Here are a few of the happy customers.

Kimaya Joshi says, “Great app. Works well all the time. Have not had any glitches or anything. Helps me move efficiently through the day. Love the history tab because I can go back and record my time spent with the patient easily. Also love that I can set it to show my office phone number.”

Ixybar says, “I’ve been using this app for quite some time and have watched it go from great to excellent. I used to use it 2-3 times per day, but during Covid, I’ve started using it 10-12 times per day as we now use it for entire tele-visits, whether it be via phone or video. My hospital’s preferred telehealth solution is cumbersome for patients and we would have lost MANY visits had it not been for this app.”

Of course, not everything is perfect, no matter how good an app is, so it’s not surprising that some people aren’t thrilled. Sejohh wrote, “The idea behind this app is great, but the execution is far from perfect. This kind of third-party calling app is nothing new, but I decided to check it out because my team was looking for something to use in the office. The app has restrictions, which limits how productive a team can be when not everyone can use the full purpose of the app. They limit most functions on the app for only certain healthcare professionals and are not looking into expanding their client base to all healthcare professionals any time soon. I cannot comfortably promote an app which is not inclusive.”

While there are a few unhappy customers, the vast majority of users seem to be quite pleased with the app and would happily recommend it to others.

Alternatives to the Doximity App

Are there other apps out there that offer the same things Doximity does? There most certainly are.

On Call Health is one of the best options available, with video conferencing, on-demand messaging, and other tools to help you manage your patients’ needs. It’s HIPAA compliant and can be used on a computer or phone. It’s essentially an office away from your regular office. You need to book a demo in order to get the price.

Another option that is quite simple, is Cliniko. This app provides strict security and privacy options and is HIPAA compliant. It’s just for the video call side of things, however, since it doesn’t offer anything else. However, you can book group appointments or one on one appointments as needed. There is a 30-day free trial.

If you are in need of adding a telehealth app, you may want to choose DoctorConnect, which is also highly rated. Again, it’s specifically for telehealth calls and will give you plenty of options. Patients can book their call, receive notifications to remind them via text, email, or phone call. This app is HIPAA compliant and designed to work for doctors across the country. It does cost money, but the price is not shared until you have set up an account.

Docimity certainly has more features than these options, but it really comes down to what you want to do with the app. What is your purpose?