(ECNS) - More than 60 percent have doubts about medical services via smartphones or other handy mobile terminals despite the sector receiving increasing investment, according to an online survey.
The survey by China News Service (CNS) portal shows less than 30 percent fully trust mobile medical services, while 60.5 percent have a "wait and see" attitude, and 11.6 percent have no belief in such service at all.
The figures are comparable to those of a survey by Data 100, a market research firm, which show just 15.2 percent believe the service is reliable.
The CNS survey reveals 30.4 percent of respondents have concerns regarding the qualification of doctors and 40 percent think smartphone apps will not replace the current way of seeing a doctor at a hospital.
The Data 100 survey shows 60.9 percent are predominantly worried about possible breaches in privacy and 57.1 percent also doubt the credibility of doctors.
However, according to the CNS survey, 23.9 percent of respondents welcome the registration service provided by health apps, and 21.2 percent appreciate the access to medical knowledge and 18.6 the ability to better understand their personal health status.
It is estimated that China now has more than 2000 health apps, which can be roughly divided into five types – e-commerce of medical supplies, information for professionals, Q&A between doctors and patients, hospital registration, and consultation and rating.
Liu Fan, the director of the Information Center of Peking University People's Hospital, says the medical market will open further in the future and it would be best for health apps to improve market segmentation and reduce the current tension between doctors and patients.
Liu is also calling for the regulation of the online market of medical services.
