Study in collaboration between HelixVM and Healthcare Innovation and Technology Lab (HITLAB)
Report authors: Ekta Jain, Vandana Yadav, Stan Kachnowski
Introduction. HelixVM™ is an online healthcare marketplace that connects patients with providers virtually. The platform simplifies access to medical consultations, prescriptions, and lab orders without requiring in-person visits. In addition to providers, HelixVM also partners with other businesses that function as referral sources for HelixVM. These referral sources offer HelixVM to their employees or patients who need a provider’s consultation for claims or a pre-procedure order. Previous studies conducted by HITLAB assessed the usability and effectiveness of the HelixVM marketplace platform. Patients and providers rated the platform highly and the providers reported higher productivity and saving provider time. HelixVM was interested to evaluate the economic and operational impact of the HelixVM marketplace platform on the businesses of its referral partners and obtain insights for further improvement.
Methods. HITLAB conducted one-on-one in-depth structured interviews with HelixVM referral partners that lasted around 60 to 90 minutes. The interview questions measured key metrics on HelixVM’s impact on business partner’s revenue, customer acquisition and retention. Data was also collected on the effort-benefit ratio, value that HelixVM brings to the business partner and overall satisfaction of the business partner and their customers. All data was analysed using thematic deductive analysis (qualitative responses) and descriptive statistics (quantitative or categorical responses).
Results. The study found that the overall satisfaction of business partners and customers of HelixVM reflected positively of HelixVM’s value to the referral partners and their customers. Revenue attributable to HelixVM ranged between USD 300 to USD 10,000 subject to the nature of referral partner’s area. Between 50% and 100% of customers showed willingness to use HelixVM services once introduced, and the conversion proportion was 81.25%. HelixVM offered operational advantages, such as cost savings for employees and enhanced patient satisfaction. While HelixVM’s contribution to the direct success of referral partners’ businesses was minimal it however, offered operational advantages such as cost savings and enhanced patient satisfaction. Patients appreciated the convenience, efficiency, and extended hours availability the platform provided. Certain challenges identified include insurance incompatibility and frustrations owing to different mode of communications to set up the virtual consultations.
Discussion. HelixVM is highly valued for its ability to streamline healthcare processes and save time for both patients and partners. Business partners shared some improvement areas such as further simplification of the process involved to set up a customer’s virtual console, ability to provide more clarity on the billing structure, timeliness in discharge paperwork and better system integration. Certain barriers like limited insurance coverage, patient reliance on familiar providers, and system integration issues restrict its broader adoption. Improving system integration of the HelixVM referral process and increasing awareness of the HelixVM market-place among the patient population can help HelixVM expand its role as a reliable, efficient, and accessible healthcare platform.
Key Findings
HelixVM is a virtual healthcare marketplace that offers convenient access to medical care and testing for patients, regardless of their insurance status. Launched in 2020, the platform allows patients to receive prescriptions, lab tests, and consultations through both asynchronous services (FastTrack Rx™) and synchronous telehealth in minutes. By simplifying routine care, HelixVM enables physicians to focus on more complex cases, enhancing both efficiency and patient outcomes. This efficiency frees up physician time to focus on more complex and critical cases, improving patient outcomes. HelixVM’s marketplace is built with the idea to address the largest healthcare issue – increasing healthcare capacity without increasing the number of healthcare providers.
Recent studies by HITLAB demonstrated that HelixVM helps doctors manage a higher volume of patients while providing faster access to care. These studies report high positive user experience among both patients and providers on aspects that included time saving, convenience, healthcare access, patient outcomes to name a few. Providers reported increased productivity, greater satisfaction with flexible work arrangements, and competitive compensation. To further expand its user base and adoption, HelixVM partnered with referral organizations such as employers and specialized healthcare systems, which refer their employees or patients to HelixVM for virtual or in-person consultations.
To evaluate the platform’s economic and operational impact, HITLAB conducted a qualitative research study using one-on-one structured interviews with HelixVM’s referral partners. The study aimed to asses the effort-to-benefit impact, examining whether the value provided by the platform justifies the effort required for referral and onboarding. The research also explored the benefits experienced by both partners and patients, while understanding the challenges faced. For this purpose, HITLAB defined specific economic metrics tied to the HelixVM platform, including cost savings, revenue growth, operational efficiency, return on investment, and patient throughput. This study aims to provide robust evidence of the economic and operational advantages of the HelixVM platform. The findings will be discussed considering practical recommendations while offering valuable insights for businesses considering or already using HelixVM’s services. The findings from this evaluation are intended to inform strategies for enhancing the platform’s overall value for both users and partners
HelixVM’s medical marketplace platform offers leverage in integration of other systems for making a booking, accessing medical records (by the provider). Patients can receive a prescription in minutes with or without a virtual provider visit. Following all HIPAA requirements, prescriptions can be delivered to patients preferred online or local pharmacy in minutes.
The marketplace platform comprises of three main utilities needs of patients and healthcare providers:
1. Patient Access and Booking Platform
HelixVM provides patients with a multi-channel booking platform to book appointments or access healthcare services, regardless of their location. They can schedule consultations online from home,
book appointments at participating pharmacies, or directly within their doctor’s office. This platform integrates with existing systems, such as ZocDoc for appointment scheduling and EMRs like ECW/Healow, allowing for seamless patient registration and appointment management. Additionally, HelixVM offers quick access through QR codes displayed in physical locations, such as pharmacies and medical offices.
2. AI-Powered Provider Tools for Triage and Treatment
For healthcare providers, HelixVM offers an AI-powered triage system that helps qualify patients’ medical conditions before consultations. This feature streamlines the process by matching the patient’s needs to appropriate treatment plans, saving valuable time for providers. On average, registered providers save 10 minutes per patient. The platform also includes pre-screened treatment templates that eliminate the need for an in-person consultation in some cases. For example, HelixVM can deliver prescriptions for medications like Paxlovid and Tamiflu in under an hour to a pharmacy. This asynchronous model, combined with defined clinical protocols, helps fast-track medicine delivery while ensuring compliance with necessary clinical data, generating billable income for physicians.
3. Discharge and Billing Management
HelixVM’s marketplace includes a flexible billing and insurance management system. Providers can choose to use HelixVM’s billing facility or continue with their own system for handling commercial payer claims. If they opt for HelixVM’s billing system, the platform compensates providers for their encounters and uses its contracts with insurance companies to generate income.
This system is designed to simplify the process of managing insurance claims and patient discharges. HelixVM handles the administrative steps, ensuring that the right insurance information and billing codes are applied and that claims are processed efficiently. By centralizing these tasks, the platform reduces the inefficiencies of using multiple systems and helps healthcare providers manage the entire billing and discharge process from a single, streamlined platform.
Participant Recruitment. Business partners of HelixVM that also function as referral sources for the HelixVM market-place platform were recruited in the study. The sampling frame was provided by HelixVM. HITLAB invited these referral sources of HelixVM to participate in the study clearly explaining the study aims and objectives.
Data collection. Participants who agreed to take part in the study attended one-on-one in-depth virtual interviews that lasted 60 to 90 minutes. During the sessions, HITLAB researchers used a detailed questionnaire consisting of 22 core questions on key metrics defined by HITLAB to capture the required data. The questionnaire was designed to capture key economic metrics identified by HITLAB. The following themes and metrics were addressed in the questionnaire.
All interviews were conducted in a one-on-one format by HITLAB researchers. The collected data was stored securely on HITLAB’s cloud platform and was accessible only to researchers directly involved in the study. To ensure confidentiality, all data was de-identified prior to analysis, and no identifying information was included in the analysis.
Data Analysis. The interview data was analyzed using descriptive and thematic analysis. For all such questions where the nature of the response or the question was quantitative in nature, we calculated proportions, ranges and averages or medians. For all such questions where the responses were qualitative, we used thematic analysis wherein the data was systematically coded into predefined themes and categories, allowing researchers to identify recurring patterns and key phrases. A comparative analysis of participant responses was conducted to highlight trends and variations, providing a detailed understanding of HelixVM’s impact on referral partners. We summarized key messages and identified emerging themes in a thematic analysis. We also used narrative analysis to share key messages from the participants as quoted by them directly. This methodological approach facilitated the identification of critical areas for improvement and opportunities to enhance the platform’s value for both users and partners.
Results. The study included four professionals from HelixVM partner organizations, with 1.5 to 3 years of experience using the platform. Participants came from the prosthetics (n=1), hospitality (n=1), and insurance management sectors (n=2), with responsibilities centered on overseeing operations and managing healthcare related processes within their organizations. Their feedback offered valuable insights into the practical applications of HelixVM, highlighting its role in enhancing both healthcare delivery and operational efficiency across these diverse industries.
Organization and participant profile
Participant 1: Administrative Supervisor
Sector: Prosthetics/Medical Devices
Responsibility: Oversees the prosthetic department.
Participant 2: Risk and Compliance Manager
Sector: Hospitality
Responsibility: Manages workers’ compensation claims, insurance renewals, guest property, medical claims.
Participant 3: Telephonic Case Manager
Sector: Insurance Management
Responsibility: Insurance management for specific self-funded worker’s compensation claims
Participant 4: CEO
Sector: Diagnostics
Responsibility: work with different provider groups and hospitals helping patients achieve at home diagnosis
Functional value for using HelixVM
Patient Engagement and Adoption Trends
PA median 5 to 8 customers (patients) visit these business partners every month needing a medical prescription and or a virtual medical consultation (includes customers who may visit more than once). Figure 1 displays Percentage of customers that show willingness to use HelixVM services and percentage of those who eventually enroll.
Figure 1: Customers (patients or employees) willingness, enrollment and conversion
The analysis of partner responses shed light on how patients perceive and engage with HelixVM. Patient willingness to enroll ranged from 50% to 75%. It is important to note that HelixVM was offered as an optional service in most cases. Most patients saw HelixVM as a solution for specific transactional needs, such as lab tests, prescriptions, or immediate consultations, and seemingly had not converted to HelixVM as their healthcare provider.
Some specifics are detailed below:
Economic and Operational Impact
Participants highlighted operational benefits, including cost savings for employers and increased patient satisfaction. Partners reported that HelixVM’s direct contribution to overall business success was minimal, with contributions of 1-2%, or at most 5%, of their success or profit to the platform. One reason could be that patients who enroll in HelixVM often use it for specific, one-time needs to begin with and seemingly most do not convert to the platform as their main provider.
Operational Benefits
HelixVM offers significant operational benefits for employers, particularly in terms of cost savings. By enabling virtual consultations, the platform helps reduce the amount of time employees need to take off from work for in-person doctor visits. This reduction in time off leads to cost savings for the employer. It benefits both employers and employees by minimizing work disruption and enhancing internal work flows. Furthermore, offering access to the platform improves employees’ perception of their employer’s support, fostering a positive workplace culture and promoting overall employee well-being.
Patients consistently report high levels of satisfaction with HelixVM, particularly appreciating its convenience and efficiency. Virtual consultations provide quick access to healthcare services without the need for in-person visits, saving time and reducing travel. This is particularly beneficial for patients in rural areas, where travel to healthcare facilities can be time-consuming and costly. Additionally, patients value the quality of services provided, along with the cleanliness of the facilities associated with HelixVM.
Effort versus Benefit
The partner organizations have trained staff who introduce HelixVM to patients and assist with the enrollment process. Explaining HelixVM to new customers typically takes just 2–15 minutes, and the enrollment process is quick and efficient. To complete the referral process, it takes a median 25 hours (range: 30 minutes to 48 hours). For the majority of business partners, the referral process happens on the phone (n=3) and at business partner it happens at their security desk. At one business partner, there are dedicated staff and their training for the referral process. At most business partners, the process is simple – they always ask the customers (patients) if they have a doctor’s order and when they say “no”, they are referred to HelixVM.
Around 75% participants responded in the affirmative when asked if the effort and time put into explaining HelixVM to customers (employees who are patients) is balanced or outweighed with the benefit from it. Additionally, partners commented on HelixVM’s customer service, noting that the platform’s support team resolve any issues quickly, further easing the process for both patients and staff.
Benefits to Participants and Patients
Patients consistently report high levels of satisfaction with HelixVM, particularly appreciating its convenience and efficiency. Virtual consultations provide quick access to healthcare services without the need for in-person visits, saving time and reducing travel. This is particularly beneficial for patients in rural areas, where travel to healthcare facilities can be time-consuming and costly. Additionally, patients value the quality of services provided, along with the cleanliness of the facilities associated with HelixVM.
Important Quotes from Business Partners
“I think the convenience factor that Helix has of offering virtual consults is helpful because we are able to get our employees back to work quicker if you know they’re cleared. I mean the Virtual Console is what’s helpful in set to be less apart from our prior occupational health company that we partnered with.” – RS1
“It gives them [patients] the convenience of being able to rest and recover at home and still get the follow up they need without having to go back somewhere else and sit in the lobby. It limits their exposure to other germs, and that’s a big one for me. I tell people you hurt yourself. You don’t want to go sit in a lobby with people coughing and that have COVID, and you know you have a sprained ankle. You don’t want to catch COVID, right? And I also think the option for it to be virtual gives us a better follow through where we don’t have to spend as much time chasing people down like got to go back, you got to go back because they don’t have to find a day that’s convenient and drive there and sit in the waiting room. They just schedule the appointment at a time. That’s convenient. They get the call, so you know they might be better and able to get released. You know at that same week versus somebody that’s better but has to go in. That might take a month because you’re trying to get them to go back.” RS2
Challenges
Insurance related
Scheduling
System Integration
Recommendations
Single channel of communication
Currently, a user utilizes a phone for text and call, and a mobile app.
This involves a lot of back and forth.
All claim related processes can be kept on a single mode.
Automation
Create automated processes for requesting information.
A user should not have to send multiple emails manually.
Timeliness and Efficiency
Currently, the discharge paperwork takes a lot of time to process.
There is a need of timeliness in getting discharge paperwork done.
Billing and Cost Structure
Discussion
Business partners accept and acknowledge that HelixVM provides a promising service which makes it easier for a customer (patient) to access healthcare. The providers are liked by the customers, and it is very quick to get a prescription from the comfort of one’s home. This allows a customer to rest and recover without having to visit any clinic or hospital physically. Business partners acknowledge that there is cost saving as reduced time on medical consultations is time saved to the company. There exists easy application and usage of HelixVM across different industry areas. Clear communication about costs, including copays and out-of-pocket expenses, is crucial for building patient trust and helping them make informed decisions. To increase adoption, it is essential for HelixVM to raise patient awareness through targeted marketing and educational campaigns.
Conclusion:
Overall, Customers and business partners express high satisfaction and an overall positive experience with HelixVM, with satisfaction ratings ranging from 6.5 to 10. Business partners shared some improvement areas such as further simplification of the process involved to set up a customer’s virtual console, ability to provide more clarity on the billing structure, timeliness in discharge paperwork and better system integration. Addressing these challenges through targeted marketing, cost transparency, and improved system integration can help drive broader adoption and ensure the long-term success of HelixVM.
Future Scope
Business partners want to increase the current engagement with HelixVM onto other services. They are keen to do more work with HelixVM in areas which are not just transactional but involve the use of recurring models.
