HealthSpot station merges personalized healthcare with videoconferencing [BD+C's 2014 Great Solutions Report]

The HealthSpot station is an 8x5-foot, ADA-compliant mobile kiosk that lets patients access a network of board-certified physicians through interactive videoconferencing and medical devices, such as stethoscopes, scanners, and thermometers. From that information, the remote doctors can make diagnoses and prescribe advice and medicine.

“We’re bringing the doctor to the patient,” says Steve Cashman, CEO and Founder of Dublin, Ohio-based HealthSpot, which launched its first station at the Consumer Electronics Show last December.

As of mid-October, about a dozen HealthSpots were in use. Eight healthcare systems in Minnesota, Miami, San Diego, and Ohio—including the prestigious Cleveland Clinic—were making caregivers available. Customers can be treated for common health conditions—colds and flu, rashes and skin conditions, eye conditions, earaches, and seasonal allergies.

On November 10, pharmacy chain Rite Aid announced that it had entered into an agreement with HealthSpot to install stations at select Rite Aid locations in the Akron/Canton, Cleveland, and Dayton/Springfield markets in Ohio.

The HealthSpot station was designed by Cleveland-based architectural firm Nottingham Spirk. Bill Nottingham, a Principal, says the station had to be portable, but not so small as to feel claustrophobic. An arched ceiling gives the pod some breathing room

Ohio-based Commercial Vehicle Group, a manufacturer of truck cabs, makes the stations. The units are shipped in pieces and reassembled on site. HealthSpot is providing the units to client locations for a one-time implementation fee to cover the installation, plus a monthly maintenance and licensing fee. Cashman estimates the stations are profitable when they handle at least six patients a day.

Cashman says he plans to place another 100 HealthSpots into the market in early 2015. He says he envisions them being installed on college campuses, in retail malls, and in assisted living facilities.

Read about more innovations from BD+C's 2014 Great Solutions Report

Rural hospitals present unique opportunities and challenges for healthcare facility operators. Oftentimes, the infrastructure and building systems have not been updated for years and require significant improvements in order to meet today’s modern medical demands. Additionally, as these smaller, more remote hospitals are acquired by larger regional and national healthcare systems, the first step by new ownership is often to update and rehabilitate the building. But how can this be done thoughtfully, economically, and efficiently in ways that allow the engineering and facility staff to adapt to the changes? And how can the updates accurately reflect the specific needs of rural communities and the afflictions with which these areas most commonly face?