Digital Healthcare Gets a Boost in Iran

Startup culture is booming in Iran and Internet-based services are infiltrating all facets of life. Following the boom in global digital economy, Internet-based healthcare startups are also gradually emerging on the Iranian landscape. 

Such startups offer at-home lab services, finding pharmacies and making appointments with physicians.

Forget spending hours in the traffic for getting to a medical center and waiting in long queues, the startups bring the services to your doorstep.

Online Lab

Local startup Azmayesh Online (Azmayesh means test) provides home laboratory services.

According to the company website, instead of visiting a lab, Azmayesh Online team comes to the destination of choice (home or workplace) and takes the samples. The startup offers several medical checkup packages and diagnostics. 

Users can book services through the website azmayeshonline.com or the company’s Telegram bot. Telegram is the most popular messaging application in Iran with an estimated 45 million users. Bots are third-party applications that operate through Telegram. Users can interact with bots by sending them messages, commands, and requests.

Test results are sent via email and Telegram.

The business launched a month ago, is currently operational in Tehran, Ahvaz, Chalus, and Damavand.

Pharmacy Finder

Meaning the aroma of health in Persian, Shamim Salamati gives users access to a database of pharmacies and drug stores through an Android application.

Through the app and based on their location, users can find the nearest pharmacies and check if they have the medicine they need. 

Users can upload a scanned copy of their prescription on the app or search the name of the medicine. The application finds the nearest drug store that has the medicine in less than an hour. Users can then check how much each prescription will cost.

Each pharmacy has a profile on the app, and users can write reviews on their performance and rank them.

The business says it is planning to add a new service which will help users to find hospitals, healthcare centers, and clinical laboratories.

The app is available for download on local app markets Café Bazaar (Android) and Sib App (iOS). 

Medical Appointment 

Operating through the website matabvisit.ir, local startup ‘Matab Visit’ (meaning clinic visit) offers online medical appointment.

The services are available in English and Persian and can facilitate foreigners’ access to healthcare services in Iran. Medical tourists from neighboring countries including Azerbaijan, Iraq, and Afghanistan are coming to Iran in increasing numbers and are looking for efficient services in a wide-range of areas.

Medical practitioners and healthcare centers have profiles on the website, and they are ranked based on user opinion.

Another startup active in the field of medical booking and health tourism is Aria Med Tour. Operating through an application, the business helps medical tourists visiting Iran. It reserves air tickets and lodging in addition to making medical appointments.

The services can be used for advanced treatment ranging from cosmetic surgery to general surgery and cancer treatment.