Weimai Launches 'Self-Service Prescription Renewal' for Internet Hospitals, Streamlining Chronic Disease Management
Recently, Ms. Liu, who has suffered from diabetes for many years, submitted a prescription renewal request to Shaoxing Central Hospital via its official WeChat account and the Weimai APP. After generating a renewal order, she was able to purchase her daily hypoglycemic medication at a pharmacy near her home by presenting the generated prescription QR code.
“In the past, I had to regularly visit the hospital to register and get prescriptions refilled. Now, I can use my medical insurance card to obtain medications at a pharmacy right in my neighborhood, which has saved me so much trouble!” Ms. Liu sincerely remarked after experiencing the convenience of online prescription services for the first time. Behind this new healthcare experience is the “Self-Service Prescription Renewal” service recently launched by Shaoxing Central Hospital’s internet hospital, with assistance from Weimai.
▲ Figure shows the prescription delivery process
As is well known, the large population of patients with chronic diseases, the prolonged course of their conditions, and the substantial demand for healthcare services mean that most require lifelong prescription medication from hospitals to manage their illnesses. Consequently, monthly hospital visits for medication refills have become routine. However, overcrowded outpatient departments in general hospitals often lead to a poor patient experience, posing a persistent challenge for both patients and healthcare institutions.
In May 2018, the General Office of the People’s Government of Zhejiang Province issued the “Action Plan for Deepening the ‘At Most One Visit’ Reform in Zhejiang’s Healthcare Services,” which proposed ten initiatives to improve healthcare services. Among these was “More Convenient Medication Dispensing”—establishing a continuous prescription system for chronic diseases and providing home delivery services for decocted traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) herbal slices (the latter has already been implemented and promoted by Weimai in Jinhua).
“The launch of this self-service prescription renewal service, as one of the top ten initiatives to improve healthcare services, is also a significant people-centered measure taken by our hospital to deepen the ‘At Most One Visit’ reform. By addressing the fundamental needs of the public, it substantially resolves the long-term challenges faced by patients with chronic diseases and their families in seeking medical care and obtaining medications. Meanwhile, it helps divert a portion of patients requiring chronic disease prescription renewals, thereby alleviating outpatient congestion at the hospital to some extent,” stated a leader from Shaoxing Central Hospital.
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Ø [Self-Service Prescription Renewal] Operating Procedure
Ø [Self-Service Prescription Renewal] Prerequisites
* Initial consultation must be conducted in person at the hospital
* Has relevant historical prescriptions
* The patient has a medical visit card or health insurance card from the hospital/city.
* For patients with chronic diseases, there are currently 11 common chronic conditions: hypertension, hyperlipidemia, hyperglycemia, diabetes mellitus, liver cirrhosis, chronic renal syndrome, anemia, chronic heart failure syndrome, peptic ulcer, cerebral hemorrhage, and coronary heart disease.
* Purchase at designated pharmacies: Currently, 15 pharmacies in Shaoxing are available (continuously updated)
* Designated Drugs: 80 Drug Varieties for the Treatment of Chronic Diseases
Ø [Self-Service Prescription Renewal] Follow-up Features
NO.1
Online Medication Fee Payment with Integrated Settlement via Basic Medical Insurance and Commercial Health Insurance
NO.2
Medication Self-Pickup or Direct Home Delivery, Choose Either
NO.3
Self-Service Test Order Requests for Chronic Disease Patients and Mobile Appointment Scheduling
NO.4
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He also noted that the service is currently available not only on the Weimai app but also via a dedicated access point on the official WeChat account of Shaoxing Central Hospital, allowing patients with chronic diseases to independently request prescription renewals on both platforms.
In addition to self-service prescription renewals for chronic diseases, Weimai has previously engaged in deep collaboration with Shaoxing Central Hospital, with a series of patient-friendly diagnostic and treatment services being steadily implemented. These services not only encompass in-hospital mobile medical services—such as mobile appointment registration, online payment, online consultations, report retrieval, and prepaid hospitalization deposits—but also include the joint establishment of an internet hospital. By opening virtual consultation rooms and fully leveraging core medical resources, including specialist experts, the partnership has realized an integrated online-offline, in-hospital and out-of-hospital networked diagnosis and treatment model.
In line with the guiding principles outlined in State Council Document No. 26, Weimai focuses on “optimizing existing resources” by supporting public hospitals in upgrading and enhancing their current medical services, while also enriching service offerings. The company has intensified its investment in “Internet+” innovative specialty services within hospital settings to drive “expansion of incremental growth,” promoting and scaling various innovative “Internet+ Specialty-Specific Disease Management” services, as detailed below:
- Leveraging the “Internet Plus” model, our maternal and child care service package, in collaboration with the professional nursing team of Keqiao District Maternal and Child Health Hospital, provides home-based mother-and-infant nursing services and continuous online consultations to local residents in Shaoxing;
l Additionally, there are various types and multi-cycle physician-customized service SKUs that provide personalized post-diagnosis disease management and guidance, committed to delivering exclusive and precise medical health services to every Weimai user.
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The head of Weimai in Shaoxing added that the company would gradually roll out various personalized services, including chronic disease management, orthopedic rehabilitation, and sleep monitoring, to bring more “Internet+” online-to-offline integrated services into the homes of Shaoxing residents.
It is foreseeable that future medical processes centered on clinical care, including prevention, diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation, will all ride the fast track of “Internet Plus” innovation. Weimai will empower public hospitals to fully leverage information technologies such as “Internet Plus” to expand the scope and content of medical services, enabling data to do more running so that patients need to run less. This will continuously enhance the equality, inclusiveness, and convenience of public services, effectively address the concerns and frustrations of the public, promote the development and implementation of “Internet Plus Healthcare,” and ensure that the people truly benefit from the innovations in this field.