"UBER Health" has launched in Australia, with health services in the Hunter now able to organise transport for vulnerable patients to get to and from routine appointments.
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Australia is the first market outside the US to trial Uber Health, a system which aims to ensure patients are connected with rides to improve appointment attendance and improve patient satisfaction.
Sam Brown, Head of Uber for Business ANZ, said transportation should not be a barrier to care for those who may not have their own way to get to or from an important appointment.
Missed medical appointments have implications for health outcomes, put increased strain on the healthcare system, and have a financial impact on the economy,
"We're proud to bring this to the Australian market to help streamline healthcare transport, reduce the strain missed appointments cause, and improve the overall patient experience," he said.
Uber says that over a 12 month period in Western Australia, more than 160,000 outpatient appointments were missed at public hospitals and clinics, costing "more than $26 million" in productivity and activity-based funding from the Commonwealth.
For other medical appointments, such as medical imaging, the rate of non-attendance is nearly 6 per cent in Australia.
Uber says that in NSW, each missed appointment costs a hospital between $125 and $800.
To use the service, a healthcare "associate" books a ride on demand or for a future appointment, using the Uber Health dashboard to coordinate rides for those in need. The passenger is then contacted by text or call with their trip details at the time the ride is booked, and again when a driver is on the way to pick them up.
The rider is sent an SMS with the driver's first name, vehicle information, and license plate number, and is "picked up and dropped off on schedule".
"We anticipate that this service will be used for patients who need to go for routine doctor or hospital appointments, improving discharge throughout, supporting community transport groups when they do not have enough drivers or volunteers, expanding clinical trial participation, and making home care visits more efficient," a spokesperson said. "We have also seen early traction as well with NDIS plan management providers to enable access to transportation solutions."
More than 3000 customers use Uber Health in the US. Following a pilot across Australia, the service is now officially available to providers nationwide.
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