Best Telehealth Services in Pakistan Offering Online Medical Doctors & Treatements

Covid19 may have dispersed for now but other illnesses are not going anywhere and the new norm is to find treatments online.

Telemedicine, or online telehealth services enable you to talk with medical doctors from different parts of the world. You can tell them your symptoms, and get diagnosed right there and then.

Several months ago, telemedicine was something people paid little attention to. However, because of the coronavirus pandemic, it is now at the forefront of our minds. This is easier as it allows you to avoid mingling with hospital crowds, waiting in line and limiting exposure to other various viruses and diseases.

Psychological therapies have been taking place online since a long time because they really are all about counselling, behavioural patterns and talk therapy which doesn’t require you to be physically present in front of your therapist.

But what are the medical telehealth services? Are they all on phone? How does a doctor check you? Here are the answer and a short guide on how to treat yourself via online medical doctors.

Telemedicine Services in Pakistan

The advent of telemedicine has made healthcare more accessible in Pakistan. Now, you no longer have to make a trip to the hospital or clinic because of a minor cough or infection scare. You can simply consult an online doctor from the comfort of your home, car, or office and get a diagnosis. Based on this, these medical practitioners will advise you on what to do next.

Pakistan has many telemedicine service providers. In this article, we will examine the some of the best and most reliable ones. Like we do with all of our lists, we have conducted in-depth research to verify these services. So, you can be sure they are reliable.

Let’s get started!

Marham

Marham telehealth service is a website which has onboarded medical doctors available from different cities. When you want to connect and get a doctor to attend to you, you can search by:

• Specializations – urologist, cardiologist, gastroenterologist, etc.
• Problems – typhoid fever, diabetes, high blood pressure, etc.
• City – Lahore, Karachi, Islamabad, etc.
• Services – chemotherapy, CT scan, etc.
• Surgery – hernia, endoscopy, etc.

You can also view each doctor’s profile before they attend to you, as well as their availability for a particular service.

Marham’s telehealth services are great, and appointments can be booked with audio or video facilities. You can also pay in advance so you can get your confirmation early. This will help you avoid any hassle you would otherwise encounter.

Marham telehealth accepts various payment methods, including Easy Paisa, bank transfers, cash on delivery, Jazz Cash, and credit and debit cards.

Finally, they operate a cancellation policy. To put this in motion, contact their customer service with the number you booked an appointment with. Your request will be granted within minutes, and you will be given a refund within 48 hours.

To use them, go through a list of their doctors, read their profile, look at their timings and days, notice which clinics they practice in and then finally locate their fee for video or audio consultation. When you get in touch, you may be asked to register on Marham, and they will then act as the arbitary window between you and the doctor.

Sehat Kahani

Sehat Kahani will show up in your internet search as well, and we think you should take a serious look at their service too.

They have doctors who are qualified in several areas. While the doctor profile lacks real knowledge, it does show experience, qualifications, and practitioner license number. Also, it shows their work address, phone number, and availability.

Perhaps the best thing about this service is its affordability: its fees are comparatively cheaper when compared to other telehealth service providers of its standing. What’s more? You can pay with your Jazz mobile account, vouchers, and credit and debit cards.

If you want a quick diagnosis, signup, search for the speciality you want the doctor of, or if you are unsure we recommend ‘General Physician’ who is online. And that’s really it. Just connect directly. The doctor will accept your call (audio/video) and you can talk right away. No wait time.

If however the call doesn’t go through, you will get an immidiate call from Sehat Kahani team and they will help you get connected to someone else who is online. Well, this is how it was with one of us when we were ill during Ashura holidays.

You and dr both have the option to start a video call, or an audio call and the option to message is right there too. So if there is bad signal issue, messaging works as well. Afterwards, you will get an email of the medicines and lab tests the doctor suggested.

Its actually a well planned UI. Their mobile apps for both iOS and Android are as good.

Their USP? Monthly Subscription plans. Pay once, and not worry about the next few consultations.

Shifa4u

Shifa4u is another reliable telehealth service provider in Pakistan. Apart from their website, where you can get attended at, they also have a health app you can download on to your smartphone.

This telemedicine service offers two online consulting services: free and paid. To take advantage of their free service, you will be required to fill a form with certain details such as your vital signs: temperature, heart rate, etc. However, the paid service will proceed based on your diagnosis and the specialized service you need.

For both service types, you will be required to state why you need an appointment. As for consultation, it is your prerogative to choose what time is convenient for you.

Once you are done with your requests, they will give you a confirmation call or text. At this juncture, you will be required to make your payment, after which your service will progress.

Shifa4U accepts multiple payment methods, including Easy Paisa, bank transfers, debit and credit cards, and online payments.

Finally, they operate a cancellation policy. However, you have within 10 minutes of scheduling an appointment to cancel it.

OlaDoc

With over 10 million users served, Oladoc is definitely a telehealth service provider you can trust.

The service has many specialist doctors such as gastroenterologists, neurologists, and endocrinologists. If you need a checkup, all you need to do is reach out to a doctor by specialization or city.

When you search, you will see a list with the details of different doctors, their availability, and the reviews left by previous patients. Based on this, you will be able to decide who you want to consult with. Once you choose, you will be provided with the doctor’s contact information, meeting time, and service fee.

Oladoc accepts different payment methods, such as online wallets and debit and credit cards. It also has a cancellation policy, which allows you to cancel an appointment till an hour before your scheduled appointment. However, if you attempt to cancel within an hour, you will be charged a 50% fee.

Sehat Yab

SehatYab is purely an online mental health facility.

They are a small provider but they are registered with Punjab Health Commission (PHC) since 2016. This means, they are serious about their offerings and services

Mental health means psychiatrists and psychologists, and Sehat Yab has both. Once you signup and start you appointment with a psyciatrist, if required, your doctor will and can consult a psychologist to treat you best. This working in coordination with each other is most suitable when comprehensive treatments are required by patients.

You are given an initial video session to get started and be acquainted with your doctor. Then onwards you can continue via text messages including audio notes. Video calls are available as well and you can choose to stay anonymous if you are uncomfortable about revealing your identity.

Liaqat National Hospital

With LNH telehealth, you can easily access doctor information, including their specialty and availability online or at a physical hospital. You will also be able to view their schedules and know when they are available for consultation; you will also be privy to the qualifications they have to attend to you.

LNH telehealth offers both video and audio options. So, the consultation mode is squarely your decision to make. The video consults are all on Zoom. Payment is via PayPro gateway.

Finally, because its Liaqat National Hospital, the medical doctors are great for all verticals and not very expensive also. The biggest advantage we see in LNH’s telehealth program is that if you later on want to switch to physical examination, the doctor will be the same. And, vice versa, if your were previously going to your doctor physically, you can book an online appointment from there telehealth portal and make your medical visit online.

For Karachi, LNH also offers free delivery of medicinies. So esstenitally once your online doctor’s appointment finishes, the doctor send your prescription to its pharmacy who then contact you for delivery and medicine confirmation.

Final Thoughts

After reading this, we are sure you view healthcare consultation in a new light. Now, you can avoid the stress of commuting to the hospital and queuing to see a doctor.

Finally, while our list contains some of the best providers of online medical doctors in Pakistan, it is by no means exhaustive or a complete list. We are aware that there are more. If you know of any that you have used and are happy with, but we have missed, kindly let us know in the comments below.

If not, we would love to hear how our list has been of help you.