Mayo Clinic, Startup Join Forces on Mobile Platform

The Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn., and Better, a Palo Alto, Calif.-based startup, have partnered on a mobile app designed to customize a patient’s information-gathering experience.


The Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn., and Better, a Palo Alto, Calif.-based startup, have partnered on a mobile app designed to customize a patient's information-gathering experience.

 The app, which is available for the Apple iOS operating system, allows users to enter individual and family health information to start a Better membership. This information is then used to deliver free personalized health information from the Mayo Clinic based on the member's health-related interests and medical history. Built on Mayo Clinic knowledge, a "symptom checker" feature is integrated into the service so a member can quickly gain a deeper understanding of a specific issue and get suggestions on what to do to get better.

The service also offers a premium service at $49.99 per family per month, which features Better personal health assistants--trained health professionals who can quickly provide information or direct any necessary next steps, including making an appointment with someone's existing physician or connecting with a Mayo Clinic nurse. The assistant can also serve as a guide on many other health-related issues, from selecting a doctor, creating a family health action plan, or even sorting out how to get the most out of one's health insurance.

"People consistently tell us they want more convenient access to Mayo Clinic knowledge," says Paul Limburg, M.D., the clinic's medical director of global business solutions. "We collaborated with and invested in Better to create a powerful way for people to connect with Mayo Clinic in their homes and communities, wherever they are."