Amwell: the doctor in my pocket

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amwell disclosureIf you had told me 25 years ago that I'd carry a phone in my back pocket, I wouldn't have believed you.
If you had told me 15 years ago that I would carry both a phone AND a camera in my back pocket, I wouldn't have listened.
Five years ago? I had no thoughts about the unlimited streaming entertainment I would always have, yes, in my back pocket.
And now? There's a whole medical practice In. My. Pocket.

As we find our way through this ever more connected world, the possibilities of what we have access to becomes more and more mindblowing. The latest in these incredible connected developments? An app called Amwell, that puts a doctor on call at your fingertips, whenever you need it. Available for desktop, iOS, and Android, Amwell connects you with a variety of healthcare providers, via streaming video call, in a matter of moments.

category selection screen

There are medical, nutrition, and mental health professionals, all available any time you need them. I recommend setting up your account now though, so that if you have an issue come up, you don't have to take the time to do it while you have a whiny kid or husband in the background, or you aren't trying to do it when you aren't at 100%.

It isn't complicated, it's all pretty straightforward information, but it isn't something I'd want to deal with if something was already wrong.

Disclosure: Max is only acting sick; he was fine, and we had a lovely chat with the doctor, but we did not test the app in an emergency situation. We talked about red eyes from swimming, but Max is just posing for these photos. See?

max with thermometer

Anyway. The app.

Once we selected that we wanted to speak to a medical doctor, we were presented with a list of available professionals. You can see their credentials, read a short bio about their specialies, and then select who you want to speak to.

You'll notice that the top two doctors are shown as “Available Now” and the other two are on “Waiting Room” mode, which just means that they're seeing another patient and you'll be waiting a bit. We chose Dr. Gabel.

doctor selection screen

Once we got into the queue, Dr. Gabel was in fact with another patient, so we had to wait just a couple of minutes. The aspiring Jeopardy contestant in me really enjoyed the scrolling slide show of health facts. Because yes, I really did need to know that germs in a sneeze travel 100 miles per hour, thankyouverymuch!

factoid while waiting

And then, it was our turn to talk to the doctor. A nice simple split screen, so I could see her and myself; I felt like there was enough room on the screen to show her something if needed, but I also felt like I could see enough of the doctor that I felt like we could really connect.

You'll notice it says “9 Mins Left” up at the top; we were given a 10 minute appointment with Dr. Gabel, and I'm not sure what would happen if we were to go over that time. I would imagine you'd have to authorize further charges. (A nutritionist appointment is 30 minutes, a mental heath session is 45 minutes)

dr gabel screenshot

A visit on Amwell is only $49, and in many states, they can even call in a prescription for you to a local pharmacy. (The app asks you where you are and will let you know what's available and what isn't as part of the sign up process) I can definitely imagine using this when Max has one of those random ailments that are hard to describe on the phone, and I know that there are times I've wished I had access to a nutritionist, just to answer a couple of questions.

Want to give Amwell a try for yourself? Use the promo code MOMSLOVEAMWELLย and your first appointment is no charge. It's FREE!

What will you use your free visit for? Save it for a medical issue, chat with a nutritionist, or take advantage of the mental health services?

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