Weimai Launches One-Stop Maternity Care with At-Home Fetal Monitoring and Real-Time Doctor Consultations

Amid the current overconcentration of medical resources in tertiary hospitals, the “three long waits and one short visit” problem is widespread, with “hours spent queuing for only minutes of consultation” becoming the norm. This poses significant inconvenience to patients requiring repeated hospital visits for specialized care, such as those with chronic diseases or pregnancy-related needs. Taking prenatal check-ups as an example, the entire process involves at least 10 separate visits. During fetal heart monitoring, pregnant women must repeatedly queue, pay, and wait, exacerbating fatigue for those already burdened by pregnancy. The issue of healthcare accessibility remains unresolved.

How can we reduce the burden on pregnant and postpartum women and minimize their hospital visits? Under given constraints, there is an inherent logical inconsistency among the cost, accessibility, and quality of healthcare services. The only way to resolve this "impossible trinity" of healthcare is by introducing new technological and model-based increments. Weimai, through its one-stop service platform and the "Internet+" model, makes healthcare services more accessible.

Taizhou Hospital’s Department of Obstetrics and Internet Medical Center have partnered with Weimai to launch an innovative “Internet + One-Stop Maternity Care” service model, allowing expectant mothers to join the club during the first, second, or third trimester of pregnancy.

Upon enrollment, members can independently select a physician at the associate chief physician level or above and bind them via the app. Once confirmed, they can view prenatal examination reports online and send them to their assigned physician for interpretation. Members may also consult on various conditions arising during pregnancy at any time. The assigned physician is responsible not only for online responses but also for regular face-to-face offline check-ups, fostering in-depth understanding and mutual trust between the physician and the pregnant woman. Meanwhile, tailored online classes are provided based on different gestational ages, allowing expectant mothers to learn conveniently and affordably from home. Offline practical courses on fetal development and infant care are also offered. Dedicated staff coordinate various matters for expectant mothers, including scheduling examinations and hospital admissions.

In late August 2017, Weimai launched a remote fetal heart rate monitoring system. Pregnant women can purchase or lease fetal heart rate monitoring devices and services online, enabling them to conduct self-monitoring at home. Physicians monitor fetal heart rate data online, providing professional diagnostic advice and timely intervention in case of abnormalities. Meanwhile, the fetal heart rate monitoring data is interconnected with hospital systems, facilitating reference for physicians during diagnosis and treatment, and helping expectant mothers better understand their pregnancy status.

According to user feedback, remote fetal heart rate monitoring is convenient to use, allowing for anytime monitoring, data upload via mobile phone, and simple operation. When used in conjunction with the Weimai platform, professional physicians provide online interpretation of reports, and users can consult with doctors at any time if they have questions. Ms. Yang, a pregnant woman, stated, “Previously, undergoing a single fetal heart rate monitoring session required queuing at the hospital, registering, paying fees, and waiting, with the entire process taking at least two hours. Now, I only need to rent a remote fetal heart rate monitor and can complete the monitoring at home without leaving the house.”

Fetal heart rate monitoring is the primary method for accurately assessing the intrauterine status of the fetus. It allows for timely evaluation of fetal heart rate responses during fetal movement and uterine contractions, thereby helping to determine whether the fetus is experiencing hypoxia. After 32 weeks of gestation, the fetus is fully formed and has higher oxygen demands. Meanwhile, as pregnancy progresses, the placenta transitions from maturity to aging. Fetal heart rate monitoring can detect fetal hypoxia at any time. Routine weekly hospital visits for fetal heart rate monitoring are recommended to ensure prompt detection and management of any issues.

In addition, by joining the “Mommy’s Good Pregnancy Club,” members receive comprehensive, “family doctor”-style care and guidance from maternal and child health experts, along with remote fetal health monitoring via fetal heart rate monitors. The scope and format of services continue to evolve rapidly; newly launched offerings, such as prenatal yoga trial classes, have been well received.

As of July 23 this year, the service has benefited 305 expectant mothers in the Taizhou region, with over 62% being advanced maternal age and high-risk pregnancies. It has provided more than 1,800 offline prenatal check-up visits, while doctors have delivered 1,580 online consultations and prenatal report interpretation services. To date, 58 pregnant women have successfully given birth.

In fact, Weimai’s innovative “Internet + One-Stop Maternity Care” service has not only enhanced the healthcare experience for local expectant mothers and their families, but also achieved a dual improvement in service quality and brand reputation for Taizhou Enze Medical Center (Group). It has become a highlight of Taizhou Enze Medical Center (Group)’s patient-centered healthcare service upgrade and was selected as a recommended typical case of hospital internet applications at the 2018 CHIMA conference.

In addition to its one-stop maternity care services, Weimai has partnered with Taizhou Enze Medical Center (Group) to build an online-to-offline “Internet + Healthcare” service network for local residents in Taizhou through platform-based innovations rooted in trust-centered medicine. This network encompasses appointment scheduling, report retrieval, payment processing, online physician consultations, medical record and health file management, as well as maternal and child health and chronic disease management.

As Weimai continues to advance its localized, in-depth operations, it will progressively launch a broader range of integrated online-to-offline medical services covering pre-consultation, during-consultation, and post-consultation phases in more cities and with more partner hospitals. This initiative aims to help hospitals expand their service scope and content, enrich the supply of medical services, and provide local residents with exclusive and precise “Internet + Healthcare” services.