Frustratingly bad design
Like so many things in the American health care system, this app is a sprawling poorly organized mess, needlessly difficult to navigate and ultimately-give-up frustrating. Your incoming messages are on the landing page but how do you get to the thread of received AND sent? Not from there! And not by clicking on Messages either. No, you have to stumble on My Records and discover them buried there for some reason. Want to renew a prescription? You can do it if you know the secret (as in completely unlabeled) button 5 clicks deep from the main menu. Need to tell the app which pharmacy to use? Hope it’s not CVS because you will have to manually search through the list of EVERY CVS in the US, randomly listed, screen by screen, until you find your needle in the haystack. And don’t bother seeking advice on how to do this more efficiently: searching Help for the word “pharmacy” yields exactly zero results. Why would anyone make these boneheaded basic usability decisions? This app is like punishment for actually trying to perform basic healthcare functions online, as if your provider were yelling at you, “just pick up the phone, for God’s sake!”
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Poor interface
Dealing with medical appointments and test results can be stressful. The Healow app test results section looks like someone typed it on an old-school keyboard. Unless you are very familiar with medical terms, it is not intuitive. Other major providers in my city use the MyChart app where in contrast the user interface is a breeze to navigate and visually appealing test results which makes it easy to understand your results. i.e. easy to understand if there is reason to be concerned. The Healow app is slow to respond whether you are on Wi-Fi or the network. When you get notifications via email, the information isn’t in the message on the app. It often says “oops”. Sad that a wealthy institution like Tulane University in New Orleans would use such a poor application. When I expressed my frustration with navigation within the app, staff at the clinic laughed and said “no one uses that app, just email us.”
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No Apple Health Intergration
Really think this app needs to interface with Apple Health. The nature of this app is a digital link to one’s medical providers. Why not connect with iOS’s central repository of health information? No better way to share health data measured outside the office with one’s doctor, and to push vitals from official medical appointments / tests back to Apple Health. IMO this needs to be integrated to be a great iOS app.
Less critical, but I would also challenge the dev team to find creative ways to encourage medical offices to use the full features of the Healow system; mainly the entering of vitals and test results into the system. My PC doctors office seems to only use Healow for appointments as of now, and I have a feeling others are doing the same. Suggestion above of sharing data with med office from Apple Health may encourage them to do the same on their end.
Less critical, but I would also challenge the dev team to find creative ways to encourage medical offices to use the full features of the Healow system; mainly the entering of vitals and test results into the system. My PC doctors office seems to only use Healow for appointments as of now, and I have a feeling others are doing the same. Suggestion above of sharing data with med office from Apple Health may encourage them to do the same on their end.
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Great concept but hard to use and sometimes dysfunctional
I rely on this app to communicate with my doctors quick and effectively and it’s really nice, although sometimes I won’t be able to read emails from my doctor, as it cuts them off and the message won’t expand. When that happens I have to try to copy it and paste it in my notes app to read it.
Also, when you try to compose a message and you back out of it, it completely deletes everything and you have to start over. A drafts option would be nice. I do really think that this app could become better with some work and it has potential, but for now I’ll deal with the bugs and irritable occurrences since I need the app lol
Also, when you try to compose a message and you back out of it, it completely deletes everything and you have to start over. A drafts option would be nice. I do really think that this app could become better with some work and it has potential, but for now I’ll deal with the bugs and irritable occurrences since I need the app lol
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App on my iPhone isn’t compatible with my Apple Watch?
I don’t know why the developer wouldn’t list the Apple Watch as a tracker option. Everyone downloading the app on here has an iPhone and I would imagine most also have the Apple Watch. I would like to track my health and share with the doctors but I don’t want to spend money for something else.
The message feature on here is a little frustrating, you can’t reply to your own messages which I’ve wanted to multiple times to clarify what I wrote. Would be really great if that was updated.
I also keep getting notifications of new messages in my inbox but there aren’t any there and when I click the notification it brings me to the home page of the app. Might just be a bug that will fixed in the next update.
The message feature on here is a little frustrating, you can’t reply to your own messages which I’ve wanted to multiple times to clarify what I wrote. Would be really great if that was updated.
I also keep getting notifications of new messages in my inbox but there aren’t any there and when I click the notification it brings me to the home page of the app. Might just be a bug that will fixed in the next update.
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Lousy app
My doctor’s office adopted this app. I downloaded it and went through the process of checking in for an upcoming appointment. As part of the checking process, I was asked to verify my current medications. If there were additional medications, there is a place to list them. I noted the additional medications I was taking and clicked to go to the next step. I got a message that indicated I had apparently included a character that was not acceptable. Instead of highlighting what the software did not like and giving me a chance to correct it, the software just wiped out all my input. I reentered the info using only alphabetic and numeric characters and spaces and the app did the same thing. It again erased all the info I entered, again with no explanation as to what the app found to be offensive. In today’s world this is pure garbage programing.
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Works but needs work
Though I installed this app a couple years ago, I haven’t needed to really use it until recently. How do I delete or even archive “we miss you” or “happy holidays” messages? Messages need the option to maintain their thread like in every other messaging app.
I like having a history of my lab and test results and have been able to rely on this feature and is what has kept me using it.
One of my main concerns is readability. The fonts are small, thin and lightweight which makes them difficult to read. I could rely more on the icons (appointments, records, etc) on the main screen if they’re easier to see (small, faint, and detailed). Ironically they are easier to see on the Help screen! The readability issue applies to every screen.
Sadly, I think this app must be one of the lower priced among the options for medical professionals. The version history reflects a lot of bug response, but the last enhancement was 8 months ago and the last update 2 years ago.
The in-app “report a problem” is non-functioning. I question whether the development team even follows reviews/suggestions for improvement or actively works to improve this app. It works, but comes in juuuust under the wire.
I like having a history of my lab and test results and have been able to rely on this feature and is what has kept me using it.
One of my main concerns is readability. The fonts are small, thin and lightweight which makes them difficult to read. I could rely more on the icons (appointments, records, etc) on the main screen if they’re easier to see (small, faint, and detailed). Ironically they are easier to see on the Help screen! The readability issue applies to every screen.
Sadly, I think this app must be one of the lower priced among the options for medical professionals. The version history reflects a lot of bug response, but the last enhancement was 8 months ago and the last update 2 years ago.
The in-app “report a problem” is non-functioning. I question whether the development team even follows reviews/suggestions for improvement or actively works to improve this app. It works, but comes in juuuust under the wire.
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Needs improvement.
I do like the app,but there are improvement that need to be made. For example one of the my most used feature is the messaging. Most of the time it’s easier than making a phone call however I can’t see the message until 2 hours after it was sent even if I check the app constantly. If my doctor sent me a message at 3 o’clock I won’t be in my inbox until 5 which is a frustrating inconvenience. It would also be helpful if I could get a notification when I get a message as well. The telahealth visit through the app is hit or miss and my doctor and I often have to do it another way. If the developers take one thing from this review to fix please fix the messaging lag.
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Heading in right direction
This app has a lot of excellent features, and I especially appreciate the efficiency of communication it allows between me and my children’s pediatrician. I have been using this app for several years now, and the main thing I‘d ask you to improve is the messaging. Parents/patients need the ability to reply, and to also see the original sent message. It’s really frustrating to have to completely start over a message each time a response is needed, and to not even be able to refer back to the original/other follow-up messages. ... Other than that, the app’s features are really great. Love the access to all records, lab reports, health logs, visit summaries, etc. UX is intuitive and simple.
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Nonfunctional app
Wasted 2 hours trying to set up this app the night before an appointment. Issue is I already had Healow installed in prep for a different appointment. Process went fairly smoothly to log into the portal the first time but that appointment is days away. I have an appointment tomorrow with another provider who unfortunately also requires Healow. App is already installed and NOTHING works to add a new account from the app (using iPhone 11)...finds provider but subsequent prompts just will not accept input. Bailed out and logged in from my newer laptop only to watch it reject every browser I tried (Chrome, IE, Edge) as “unsupported.” Ended up giving up and logging on using the browser app from my iPhone, bypasses the app entirely. At least the test didn’t reject the browser, but it’s really not optimized for the main bike screen. Due to COVID risk,I need these virtual visits. Guess if it doesn’t work tomorrow with my crazy workaround I’ll cancel my appointment and blame it on eClinicalWorks. I know I won’t be the first to do so. As an IT professional in healthcare, I hate seeing buggy apps like these because I know it will be a barrier to healthcare for some non technical or older people. Sad.
Update: assuming eCW took the backend down last evening with NO alert that maintenance was occurring. Monday am functions like linking an account mysteriously work. Wow. What a waste of an evening.
Update: assuming eCW took the backend down last evening with NO alert that maintenance was occurring. Monday am functions like linking an account mysteriously work. Wow. What a waste of an evening.
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