Practo’s healthcare map on Indian women is based on insights from seven crore women users in the period of Jan 2019 – Dec 2019.
The Insights summarize the recent trends which reflects the way women in India address their health concerns and take care of their health needs.
Registering a growth of over 119% since last year, online consultations have emerged as one of the preferred modes of doctor consultations amongst Indian women. “It makes consultation convenient, immediate and more importantly, private.” says Priya, a 32-year-old Practo user.
Key Insights
- Gynaecology emerged as the most popular speciality amongst women, especially, in the age group of 20-30
- Women in the age group of 20-30, accounted for 66% of the overall consults on Gynaecology.
- Overall, eConsults for gynecology grew by 44% since last year Growth among metro cities stood at 67%, with most of the consults coming in from Bangalore, Delhi NCR, Hyderabad, Mumbai and Chennai (in that order).
- Non-Metros grew at 57% since last year, with cities like Ahmedabad, Jaipur, Indore, Agra and Varanasi contributing majorly
Top Queries Discussed
- Top queries discussed were irregular periods, pregnancy, unprotected sex complications and PCOD
6pm-8pm is when most consults happened with gynecologist, indicating, a growing trend of consulting after office hours. - Dermatology and Sexology rank as the second and third most popular specialities amongst women users in 20-30 age group.
- Overall, Dermatology consults grew over 40% since last year.
- Trichology and cosmetology were the top categories of discussion among young women who are increasingly taking professional advice when it comes to the wellbeing of their skin and hair.
- Overall, Sexology consults witnessed an increase of 130% in the last one year.
- Indian women find econsults as a safe alternative to self-diagnosis, especially when it comes to their sexual health. It empowers them to be more proactive about their health, say medical experts.
- Children’s health (Pediatrics) was the top concern for women in the age group of 30-40.
- Women in the age group of 30-40, accounted for 76% of the overall consults on pediatrics.
- Overall, Pediatrics witnessed a growth of 45% since last year.
- Health queries around remedies for cold and cough for infants and vaccination for babies were among the most discussed queries last year.
Top eConsults for Pediatrics
- Top eConsults for pediatrics came from metro cities like Bangalore, Chennai, Hyderabad, Delhi NCR, Mumbai and Pune
- Non-metro cities like Lucknow, Patna, Jaipur, Mangalore, Visakhapatnam and Indore witnessed a 125% growth in the number of eConsults that came in for pediatrics
- Queries regarding infants’ health saw a 93% rise during odd hours(10 pm – 6 am) as new mothers tend to get worried by even the smallest of symptoms in infants
Women above 40 consulted Orthopedists the most
- 76% of the consults for orthopedics came from women aged 40 – 50.
- Overall, Orthopedics witnessed a growth of 32% in the last one year and most discussed queries were high grade knee tear, back and joint pain, fractured or broken tibia and arthritis.
- Bangalore city topped the chart when it comes to consulting for orthopedics from specialitists on Practo
Non-metro cities like Jaipur, Patna, Lucknow, Bhopal and Kanpur witnessed a growth of 120%. - Problems like spinal strain and lower back pain that are related to severe work pressure topped the queries.
- Women preferred afternoons to consult orthopedists indicating a preference of consulting during office hours.
Dr Alexander Kuruvilla, Chief Healthcare Strategy Officer, Practo, said,
“Today’s consumers face three key challenges in their healthcare journey: access, quality and affordability. eConsults have emerged as a preferred alternative to consumers, esp. millennials, for whom time and quality is of essence. It has the power to reach users even in the remotest of villages, at the oddest of hours, when access to specialists may be a challenge. And that’s one trend that’s emerging strongly, esp. among women users. We see women increasingly using our platform to consult doctors instead of self-diagnosing or worse still, ignoring their symptoms all together. In our endeavour to make quality healthcare affordable and accessible to billions, eclinic plays an important role, and we’re committed to widening its reach even further over the coming years.”
Dr Vanita Vaishnav, Obstetrician and Gynaecologist, Bangalore, said,
“Digital platforms like Practo provides an excellent opportunity for people, especially women to seek medical assistance from specialized doctors by empowering them with the right information, and easy access to quality healthcare. There is an increased awareness among women in India regarding various health problems as well as growth in the number of people consulting the right specialists due to efficiency of channels like online consultations. Digital healthcare has played a significant role in improving the overall experience of the patients in terms of accessibility, quality, convenience, and especially trust.”