Practo, Uber partner to take patients to doctor

The service will be available initially in in India, Indonesia, Philippines and Singapore

Practo, the Bengaluru-based healthcare booking platform, and Uber, the global ride-hailing technology platform have announced a global partnership that will make it easier for consumers to reach doctors. The firms will jointly provide this service in India, Indonesia, Philippines and Singapore, and which will be increased over the coming months.

Practo users across India, Indonesia, Philippines and Singapore who book an appointment on its app will be able to see the closest Uber available when they get a reminder alert for their appointments. Users can then click the reminder notification and complete the booking process, the firm said in a statement.

Practo said the app will give an estimate time for Uber cars to arrive, the destination and the estimated fare. The driver app will have the destination pre-filled once the trip starts. The next phase of integration will involve notifying the user to request for an Uber an hour prior to the appointment.

"We work relentlessly towards providing a simplified healthcare experience that reduces consumer stress and anxiety at every level. We realized that transportation issues often bring additional stress to a doctor's visit - having to drive through traffic, then hunt for parking - all while you or your loved one is sitting in the car feeling ill is a terrible experience. There are also many patients who may not be able to drive themselves to a doctor at all. Our goal with this partnership is to completely remove this anxiety by integrating with Uber's incredible experience and bringing that to our consumers." said Shashank ND, Founder & CEO, Practo said in the statement

"At Uber, our mission is to bring safe, convenient and reliable rides at the push of a button to everyone, everywhere. We are delighted to partner with Practo to provide people with convenient access to quality healthcare services. The technology integration through this partnership reflects our common commitment to create seamless experience for all our users," said Amit Jain, President of Uber India.(EoM)