I have rediscovered the value of apps that are extremely focused. Not just on a clear target audience but also on providing one specific service. Apps that are just content to be on your phone, or even sitting on the bench in whatever app store they're available on until the moment you need them. And in that moment they are ready to shine.
You know, the apps that have the confidence to say: "If you need me, I'm just a tap away. And if you don't, that's ok too. I won't bother you". No needy push messages (what's in a name?) begging you to just open the app for a second so that somewhere, in some meeting room, a misguided target can turn orange instead of staying red. An app that does only one thing, and does that so well that the OKRs, KPIs and OGSMs just write themselves... On a onepager... With an 18px Calibri body font... And for some odd reason, in Powerpoint... That reminds me. I have some thoughts on onepagers. But let me finish this first.
In my search for these aforementioned types of apps, I came across one that allows doctors to write prescriptions called RX Whizz. Now if you know anything about healthcare, especially in The Netherlands, you know that it has standards, and those standards have rulesets, and those rulesets have laws that support them and those laws in turn have their own standards with ISO certificates which in turn have mortgages and lower back problems... Yes i'm exaggerating, but as an outsider, that's how it feels.
Mind you, I'm not speaking on behalf of patients, but as an objective person looking in. The patient's experience is a whole other story that's getting some well deserved attention by the Digizorg app for example.
Now, given the challenges the RX Whizz app faces, I wasn't surprised to see the hoops it has to jump through to get anything done. First of all, there is an elaborate verification of personal details to ensure the user is actually who they say they are, and if they are also a registered doctor. Next, personal information is only saved on the device, and never uploaded to any server. To ensure these details aren't on the device for "longer than needed", the app makes sure to remind you of the fact that it is your own responsibility to delete the information if "no longer needed". The prescription itself even has a watermark that identifies if it's valid or not. But if you look past those features it is an app that basically lets you generate a PDF with information.
Honestly, there's nothing stopping a doctor from typing all the necessary information for a prescription in their Notes app and then converting that to a PDF and sharing it... But let's not go there for now. Let's turn off the "why" brain and whether or not it "adds value" and focus on the fact that it was around this time that I also forgot to cancel my free iStock trial. Honestly, I don't even remember why I wanted the free trial to begin with, but here we are; A very expensive stock photography subscription and a very simple idea for an app. I couldn't help myself so I worked on improving the RX Whizz app based on my own assumptio... I mean expertise.
I had fun doing this, and even though the designs are filled with assumptions, I was mainly doing this to ensure I get the most out of my iStock subscription. The next thing I'll work on will probably be an app that will help me manage what groceries I have available at home. Like a Pantry management tool, but without recipes, grocery lists and other fluff that I personally don't need.
By the way, after a quick Google search I found that someone already setup a website to easily write prescriptions in response to RX Whizz becoming a paid service. And that someone, surprise surprise, is my cousin. Who's a doctor.
Of course he is...
