Des Moines, Iowa — CigmarHealth, a health insurance provider is now partnering with telemedicine groups to offer remote health care services on TikTok. With the surge of doctors and nurses joining social media, CigmarHealth is attempting to target the Millennial and Gen Z population by having a direct presence on the platform.
Telemedicine allows doctors to virtually interact with patients to perform remote diagnoses and provide treatment information. From 2013 to 2017, telemedicine “visits” have grown by 36% and are projected to hit 60 million visits in 2020.
“We’re looking forward to the surge of young individuals who would otherwise skip going to the doctor and just ‘google’ their symptoms,” stated Dr. Herbet Trinton, Medical Director of CigmarHealth’s technology operations. “Ambulances take approximately 15 minutes, we can get to you in just one.”
In order to get diagnosed, an individual needs to upload a video to TikTok describing, showing, or singing their symptoms and tagging @NEEDHEALTHNOW. On call Telemedicine specialists will review the material and triage the patients by creativity. Doctors will then respond with a 15 to 60 second video. By uploading their symptoms, users forfeit all HIPAA protections.
No need for insurance, users can pay for their diagnosis straight to the doctor’s cash.app or Patreon (fee not disclosed until after service, message and data rates may apply). Special rates are offered for e-girls doing the “woah” or performing a “paper reveal” while listing their symptoms.
Dr. Julie Li, a telemedicine specialist and rising influencer, commented, “While they’re probably faking it, I can diagnose most TikToks like 20 seconds in. I’ve only had three patients die on me. So it’s a pretty easy way for me to make some extra cash. And if it takes too much effort I just refer them to a specialist, I still get paid baby!”
Mental health options are currently not being offered.
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