MaNaDr sets 1-minute requirement for teleconsultations before MC can be issued

MaNaDr has instituted a new rule requiring its teleconsultations to last for at least a minute before a medical certificate (MC) can be issued.

In addition, all teleconsultations will be recorded via audio, while the onboarding process of clinics and doctors using the platform will be tightened.

AI has also been used to improve clinical standards during these teleconsultation sessions, CNA reported.

This includes using AI to consolidate patient records and treatment plans, as well as using an AI note taker to transcribe interactions between doctors and patients.

The measures were announced by MaNaDr's co-founder and Chief Executive Officer, Siaw Tung Yeng, at a press conference on Apr. 2.

Tightened measures for teleconsultation follow revocation of clinic's licence in December 2024

The announcement of the new measures follows the revocation of MaNaDr Clinic's licence in December 2024.

The clinic is no longer authorised to provide outpatient medical services via their clinic at 371 Beach Road City Gate, at temporary premises such as patients' residences, and remotely via teleconsultations.

The revocation followed an investigation by MOH which found that a "very large number" of cases seen by MaNaDr Clinic involved "very short" teleconsultations.

The ministry revealed that in a sampled month, more than 100,000 teleconsultations at the clinic involved video calls with patients that lasted one minute or less, with the shortest one lasting one second only.

"Such short consultations raise concerns about the safety and quality of clinic care provided to patients," said MOH.

In addition to undergoing these "very short teleconsultations", some patients were also issued with "multiple MCs over a short period of time", typically within a month.

"For example, in a sampled month, more than 1,500 patients were issued with MCs on five or more occasions, with the highest number of MCs issued to a single patient in a month being 19," MOH added.

Finally, the ministry also found the clinic's documentation "questionable and poor", as some of the case notes from the teleconsultations "contained detailed information that did not appear to be commensurate with the duration of teleconsultation".

CEO: Licence revocation only applies to City Gate clinic, not its platform

CNA also reported Siaw saying MaNaDr's City Gate clinic operations are separate from its telemedicine technology platform.

Both of these businesses are run separately by MaNaDr's holding company, Mobile-health Network Solutions.

Hence the revocation of the licence only affects the City Gate clinic and not other parts of MaNaDr's business, including its primary revenue driver which is the platform that provides telemedicine services to "50 to 100 clinics" in Singapore, Siaw was further quoted as saying.

Siaw also said the City Gate clinic is effectively "independent and manages itself", when asked why questionable practices at the clinic were not detected earlier.

He also replied that the experience thus far has been a learning process, when asked why safeguards were not put in place.

He also said MaNaDr acknowledges the findings and decision by MOH.

He was quoted as saying, "(We) have strengthened our platform’s governance and compliance, training and education with AI safeguards and innovation."

Top photos via Google Maps & MaNaDr website