Uber In Portugal Is Now Offering Home Healthcare Visits

Internationally renowned transportation app Uber is now expanding far beyond its original premise based on ride-sharing. Its latest venture entails providing comprehensive healthcare services, a bold new program that the company is piloting in Portugal.

Last month, it was reported that Uber Eats, the food-delivery branch of the company, will be expanding into delivering something more than just a meal: healthcare on demand.

The Portugal News reported that the Uber Eats platform will now feature a “Doctor at Home” function, providing users with the ability to request either an in-person house-visit by a healthcare professional, or a phone or video consultation for medical advice. To enable this, Uber has reportedly partnered with Ecco-Salva Medical Services, a local leader in providing a variety of services ranging from home medical assistance, telemedicine services,  occupational health consultations, patient transport capabilities, and much more.

Uber is certainly not new to the healthcare game. I wrote last year about how both Uber and Lyft are attempting to solve critical problems in healthcare, including tackling the massive access-to-care issue faced by millions of Americans. Furthermore, Uber has already ventured into auxiliary healthcare services. Last year, it announced a groundbreaking partnership with ScriptDrop, hoping to provide millions of Americans an easier way to get access to prescription medications.

The original press release for the initiative explained: “This work is part of [Uber’s] continued commitment to building flexible and scalable delivery solutions, and, more importantly, it will enable even more customers to benefit from prescriptions delivered directly to their doorsteps.”

Amanda Epp, CEO of ScriptDrop, added: “This past year has shown us now more than ever that pharmacies need more effective ways to get patients the prescriptions they need […] Being able to combine ScriptDrop’s integrated interface with Uber’s technology means that pharmacies of all sizes will be better equipped to improve prescription adherence and serve the most vulnerable of their communities.” 

This sentiment is really what it all comes down to, especially when looking at the larger healthcare narrative for companies like Uber: creating easier ways to provide services and improving consumer quality of life. Uber has succeeded in developing one of the largest intangible transportation, logistics, and user networks in the world. The company’s most valuable asset, its employees, have helped develop a robust social experience that has redefined the transportation and delivery industry.

This infrastructure has provided Uber with massive potential for disrupting the healthcare industry, and the company is just now starting to truly embark upon this journey. Undoubtedly, this new initiative in Portugal is likely one of many more to come. If Uber is indeed able to successfully scale this model in a manner which optimizes patient safety and security, there may be an unparalleled and unique opportunity to provide value to billions of people worldwide.