Frequently Asked Questions

WhatsDoc International Pte. Ltd. is a digital healthcare company, based in Singapore that offers remote healthcare and real-time medical consultation to patients and individuals through chat, audio, and video consultations. This is done through a concise mobile application – WhatsDoc.

We operate globally with a particularly strong network in the Asia Pacific region, with representative offices in Malaysia and Indonesia, as well as associates throughout the region. Working closely together with the Ministry of Health of Singapore, these services are offered through a regulatory sandbox.

We have a panel of certified professional clinicians/ healthcare professionals that are available to help you out with non-urgent and non-emergent healthcare conditions. If needed, we also offer other services which include (a) Prescription for travel medicine in recommended dosages; (b) Clarification of your medical and health reports/laboratory results; and (c) Consultation on sexual health and contraception options; and many more which can be found under our Patients page.

In regards to chronic medical illnesses management, we are able to administrate medication/ medication refills for diabetes, hyperlipidemia, hypertension, and other related secondary diseases which might arise from such medical illnesses.

Yes, there is. If you are an individual below the age of 18 looking to use the app, you must be accompanied by a parent or guardian during the consultation at all times.

Minors are not allowed to register for their own account. You must be registered under your parent or guardian’s app account prior to usage of the app.

At the moment not yet. We are constantly upgrading our services, and we do have in pipeline integration with Google Fit account and Apple Health Records. This would benefit us to follow up on your care.

The app is available and appropriate-for-use for anyone looking for the below services:

• Medical care and treatment for non-urgent and non-emergent healthcare conditions;
• Professional medical advice/ second clinical opinion for existing conditions.

Before you can officially begin using WhatsDoc, please verify your mobile number through our sign up process in app.

You will be required to register as per your IC both for verification, and to ensure safety in prescribing medications, providing MCs, and other e-referrals or services that we provide.

No, we do not encourage the sharing of accounts as your account is registered under your name and linked with your personal data medical records. This will cause a serious misunderstanding and confusion for the doctors/ healthcare professionals as they might determine a misdiagnosis.

However, if you are a minor under age 18, you must be registered under your parent or guardian’s app account prior to usage of the app.

The video consultations are done in real-time and strictly kept between the available and assigned clinician/ healthcare professional and patient.

Upon choosing an available clinician/ healthcare professional, you will be included in the queue of other patients. Once the clinician/ healthcare professional is available, the app will notify you before starting the video consultation.

The clinician/ healthcare professional will first confirm your name and NRIC/ FIN/ passport number that was provided during your account registration. If your identity cannot be confirmed, the video consultation will be cancelled.

After evaluating your conditions, symptoms or other existing medical condition(s), you will be determined based on the doctor/ healthcare professional’s best assessment whether or not it is suited and safe to continue on with the session.

If your clinician/ healthcare professional determines that you are suitable for the video consultation, you will be provided with a diagnosis, prescription, medical certificate and/or medical referral letter (if applicable/ when appropriate).

If your clinician/ healthcare professional informs that you are not suitable for the video consultation, you will be informed so. Before proceeding to end video consultation, you will also be advised accordingly on the suitable course of actions for the continuity of your care.

Yes, you can still access the app and go through a video consultation. However, we do not provide medication delivery services outside of Singapore. We operate globally with a particularly strong network in the Asia Pacific region, with representative offices in Malaysia and Indonesia, as well as associates throughout the region.

Understanding colour codes:

• A green dot means they are currently present online, and will be able to attend to you;
• A grey dot means they are unavailable.

Each patient will be assigned to one available clinician for one session. You will not be able to consult multiple doctors at once. This is to ensure other patients are able to go through the video consultation as well.

List down as many details of your symptoms as possible for the clinicians/ healthcare professionals to indicate a proper diagnosis.

This information will be updated in “BioData > E-Docs”.

The medical advice received should be treated as a second clinical opinion and not be considered as a final diagnosis.

There are multiple clinicians/ healthcare professionals on the platform, therefore it is up to your preference. Our platform is fully transparent and allows each user to take charge of their health journey.

Waiting time will depend if the on-screen clinician is attending to another patient at that very moment.

Firstly, always dressed appropriately and refrain from using abusive language. Secondly, where and when applicable, here are some things that you can prepare prior to the consultation:

• You might be required to take some photos of any of your physical condition for the doctor to examine closely: for example an injury/ wound / any skin abrasion of any kind.
• Should you have any previous medical results or clinician’s report that may be relevant to the purpose of your consultation or may assist the diagnosis in any manner, please feel free to share them with your clinician. Any information and data regarding your health that is shared will be kept private between yourself and the company for proper follow-ups and reference when and where necessary.
• Home medical equipment (if available): blood pressure machine, glucometer (for diabetics/ to test blood sugar level), thermometer.

By default, online tele advice is 20 minutes per session.

The platform has different available clinicians/ healthcare professionals every day, and there might be a possibility that your selected clinician/ healthcare professional might be occupied with another patient. We request for your kind patience and understanding for this matter. Nevertheless, you may click “Cancel” and try again with another available clinician/ healthcare professional. However, you may be shifted to the back of the queue therefore we do not recommend that action.

All the clinicians/ healthcare professionals that will be attending to you in the app are officially registered with the Singapore Medical Council or their respective council in their country, for example Malaysian Medical Council, and have their medical credentials certified accordingly. They have also gone through a strict and thorough screening and training process to test their medical capability, speciality and professionalism before being accepted as part of the panel. Should you want to get to know the list of clinicians/ healthcare professionals that are within the panel, you may take a look at their professional profiles on the app via “Partners”.

If you find any misconduct or inappropriate actions displayed by the clinician/ healthcare professional, you may end the video consultation and immediately report him/ her to us through the platform. The team will review and take the necessary actions.

Chat/Video can be extended with a prompt message. In a situation where the User has extended his chat consultation by 40 minutes, User will be billed two (2) 20 minutes sessions. For a S$ 5 per 20 minutes chat session; the User will be invoiced S$ 10 in total.

Our consultation fees are exclusive of GST, cost of medication and delivery charges (where applicable). The currency will depend on which country the healthcare professionals are practising. And also depends on if you choose a chat consult, or audio video consult. We will periodically upgrade our price list for the best deal to our users.

Singapore Pricing

Chat: Audio:Video (based on S$cost/20mins)

Specialist: 25:100
GP and Allied Healthcare 5:20

Your total bill would consist of our consult rate (chat, + audio/video if any), prescription, and delivery, whichever applicable.

Yes, you are allowed to change or add your payment card. Go to “BioData > Edit Profile > Payment Method”. The revised payment card will be used for all payments for all related WhatsDoc services.

Payment can be made through the following channels:

• Related VISA or MasterCard debit/credit cards

You may choose your preferred payment method every time you are requested to do so.

For your convenience, you may add the preferred debit/ credit card under the “BioData > Edit Profile > Payment Method” section of the menu.

An e-receipt will be issued upon received payment and can be downloaded under the “BioData > E-Invoice” section of the menu.

All charges for any consultation are final and no refund is allowed. Should there be any situation or circumstance that requires such action, please email us at contact@hiwhatsdoc.com for us to review.

WhatsDoc is available to patients 24/7 depending on the healthcare professionals using our platform.

Office work hours and after hours will incur different charges altogether. Please review the price prior to starting a consultation.

Please be informed that WhatsDoc should only be used for non-urgent and non-emergent conditions (please refer to the list below). If you are experiencing conditions that require immediate medical assistance, please proceed to contact your local emergency services or proceed to consult a clinician-in-person.

• Head: Headache, migraine, fever, conjunctivitis (pink eye), earache/ ear infection;
• Respiratory: Common cold, flu, sore/ strep throat, cough (dry and wet);
• Skin: Minor burns, rashes, eczema, cold sores, mild skin infections, simple wounds, allergies, other dermatological issues;
• Gastrointestinal: Vomiting, constipation, diarrhoea;
• Urinary tract infection and other related non-emergent medical conditions and matters.

The app’s video consultations is ONLY to attend to non-urgent and non-emergent healthcare conditions.

Should your conditions/ symptoms relate to the below that require immediate medical assistance, we advise you to proceed to contact your local emergency services or proceed to consult a doctor-in-person for a physical consultation:

• chronic medical illnesses/ situations which have not been previously diagnosed by a clinician;
• emergency and major circumstances;
• mental health conditions; and
• any other condition informed and determined during the video consultation to refer to a clinician-in-person for a physical consultation for examination, clarification, diagnosis and/or treatment.

any other condition informed and determined during the video consultation to refer to a clinician-in-person for a physical consultation for examination, clarification, diagnosis and/or treatment.

• chest pain;
• chest pain;
• continuous bleeding, deep wounds etc.;
• severe abdominal pain;
• severe difficulty in breathing;
• sudden numbness, weakness or slurred speech; and
• suspected fractures/ possible dislocations that may present as severe pain, deformity, loss of sensation, open wounds, severe bruising or swelling, etc.

Other symptoms that are not listed above may be assessed accordingly by the assigned clinician/ healthcare professional through the video consultation.

Additionally, the assigned clinician/ healthcare professional may refer you to consult a clinician-in-person should you require the following healthcare services or prescribed medication:

• controlled or restricted medication;
• health screenings;
• imaging modalities;
• laboratory tests;
• radiology services;
• smear tests and other procedures; and
• vaccinations

Besides the primary service of video consultation with clinicians and healthcare professionals, we also offer the following medical-related advice and assistance within the system:

• Conditioned issuance of Medical Certificate (Please refer FAQ: Medical Certificate > Question 1);
• Prescription for travel medicine in recommended dosages;
• Clarification of your medical and health reports/ laboratory results;
• Consultation on sexual health and contraception options;
• Management of *chronic medical illnesses (including chronic medication refills) – *terms and conditions apply.

If your clinician/ healthcare professional on the app determines that your conditions and/or your symptoms are not fit for him/ her to continue the video session, do not worry.

Before your clinician/ healthcare professional ends the video, they will provide you some advice on the next course of suitable actions that you may follow.

Amongst the necessary actions may include but not limited to the following:

• Issue a medical referral letter for you to seek a specialist;
• Consult a general practitioner at a recommended clinic;
• Approach the nearest emergency department (if necessary).

The app is available for FREE to download on the Apple App Store (for iOS devices) or Google Play.

For iOS devices, you will need at least the iOS 9 system updated on your device to install the app.

As for Android devices, you will need at least the Android 5.0 system updated on your device to install WhatsDoc.

If you are unsure if your mobile/ electronic devices is up to date, you may check the software in your phone settings.

Please ensure a strong and stable WiFi/ data connection for your phone before usage to guarantee a seamless video consultation experience.

Yes, you are able to register an account with a foreign passport.

Please check in your settings that you have allowed the app to access your microphone and camera for you to be able to view and speak to the clinician/ healthcare professionals and vice versa.

Yes, you are able to register for an account using a non-Singapore registered mobile number.

As part of the registration process, there will be a one-time passcode (OTP) sent to your mobile phone for added security measure. This single-use passcode (do not share it with anybody else) will be used to authenticate your identity.

If in any situation you get disconnected during your consultation, please try to reconnect within 5 minutes and you will be able to resume the same session with the same clinician/ healthcare professional.

If you are still unable to establish connection, contact our customer service through the WhatsDoc app or email us at contact@hiwhatsdoc.com. We will try our best to guide you step-by-step to solve the problem for you to enjoy a seamless experience.

Should you need one, you may request and the doctor will write up an e-prescription for you. Please then check under “BioData > E-Prescription”.

Yes, you are still able to purchase the medication prescribed to you within 24 hours after the video consultation via the app. Please write in your request to purchase to our customer service through the WhatsDoc or email us at contact@hiwhatsdoc.com.

After the 24 hours, the prescription will expire and you will not be allowed to purchase any medication unless there is a new prescription given by the clinician/ healthcare professional.

All prescribed medication by our company are dispensed and delivered in a package with a tamper-evident seal.

We urge patients to thoroughly check through the medication package and ensure if:

• Your name is correctly displayed;
• The medicines are neatly packaged within and handed to you personally before leaving the pharmacy.

Note: Please open up the package if needed to confirm the contents with your prescribed medicine list.

If you realise that you have received the wrong medication package (e.g. Incorrect name/ wrong list of medicines), immediately inform us by contacting the customer service through the WhatsDoc app or email us at contact@hiwhatsdoc.com.

We do not make it compulsory for patients to get the medication prescribed by the clinician/ healthcare professional from WhatsDoc. The prescriptions are done accordingly to the best care assessment and examination of your condition during the video consultation.

We are committed to adhering to the medical regulations and to ensure secure and care for our patients. These include prescribing policies which are constantly reviewed and updated to fulfil the best practices within the medical industry.

This applies to a certain medication that was previously prescribed may be unavailable. When this situation occurs, our panel clinicians/ healthcare professionals will recommend other possible treatment alternatives.

As for the case for controlled medication, we sincerely apologise as our company and doctors are not allowed to give patients any prescription which could lead to addiction or subject to substance abuse through the video consultation via the App.

Yes, we do offer repeat medicine prescription services. In regards to chronic medical illnesses management, we are able to administrate medication/ medication refills for diabetes, hyperlipidemia, hypertension, and other related secondary diseases which might arise from such medical illnesses.

Under our current policy, every patient must furnish us with an existing prescription for verification through the app for the company to permit for a medication refill. Take a clear photo of the needed prescription and upload it to our doctors/ healthcare professionals.

In ensuring all patients through our app receive a seamless and convenient end-to-end customer experience, you will be able to purchase the prescribed medication and opt for a delivery service.

Upon receiving your medication package, you will need to present the below for justification and validation purposes to ensure you are given the correct medication as prescribed by your doctor/ healthcare professional:

• Your NRIC/ FIN/ driving license/ passport

For clarification, our video consultation fees are exclusive of GST, cost of medication and delivery charges (where applicable). Please be informed that any purchase and delivery charges are non-refundable.

To ensure a smooth and accurate collection of your medication package, please remember to bring along your (i) NRIC/ FIN/ driving license/ passport that was used upon registration and (ii) your mobile device to access the app.

Once collected the medication package, please double check the medication package for these important information:

• Your name is correctly displayed;
• The medicines are neatly packaged within and handed to you personally before leaving the pharmacy.

Note: Please open up the package if needed to confirm the contents with your prescribed medicine list

If you realise that you have received the wrong medication package (e.g. Incorrect name/ wrong list of medicines), immediately inform us by contacting the customer service through the WhatsDoc app or email us at contact@hiwhatsdoc.com.

If you are unable to accept your medication package on your chosen delivery date or at the stated address, you may update them accordingly.

Nevertheless, if our delivery expert is already on the way, the change cannot be done and we will have to reschedule for a re-delivery. This may incur additional re-delivery charges.

For security reasons, only the patient or (in the case of a minor) the patient’s parent/ guardian can collect the medication package.

Alternatively, should you be unable to collect the medicine personally, an authorised person may be assigned to collect the medicine for you.

That authorised person will need to bring their NRIC/ FIN/ driving license/ passport for clarification during the collection.

We practice strict protocols and follow set SOPs related to user confidentiality and personal information security and to assure our patients receive the correctly assigned medication package.

By referencing your NRIC/ FIN/ passport within your mobile phone, our delivery experts will be able to carry out the verification process and accurately ensure your medication package is safely and correctly delivered.

Upon arriving at your delivery address, our delivery experts will always try to reach you and will wait for up to 10 minutes before leaving.

If you have missed the delivery due to unforeseen circumstances or any emergency situation, we have to reschedule for a re-delivery. This may incur additional re-delivery charges.

If you are unable to accept your medication package on your chosen delivery date or at the stated address, you may update them accordingly.

Yes, we are able to issue you a medical certificate when and if the clinician/ healthcare professional deems your condition fit to have one.

However, this does not guarantee that you will surely be issued a medicate certificate after every video consultation session. It will be up to the discretion and condition assessment of the clinician/ healthcare professional during your session if you would need one.

As part of the medical care protocols and SOPs, when seeking treatment at a medical clinic, it is necessary for you to present your NRIC/ FIN/ driving license/ passport for identification purposes and to ensure the medical personnel is able to keep your medical records updated correctly.

Similarly, we request for you to register using a copy of your NRIC/ FIN/ driving license/ passport for us to accurately verify patient identification in offering them the best quality consultation and proper treatment as well as maintain their medical records.

Yes, you are able to access your recent records as per your previous video consultancies within the app. You may go to the menu “BioData > E-Docs”, or simply look into the chat history of the clinician/ healthcare professional you consulted with.

Your data privacy is our utmost priority. Your patient data and payment details are kept confidential and securely stored as per our Privacy Policy. The information is also protected and secured for any assigned doctor/ healthcare professionals’ quick access and reference during future consultations.

The video consultations are done in real-time and strictly kept between the clinician and patient. Any recording (both video and audio) of the consultations (be it from the administrator, doctor or from the patient) on the app is strictly prohibited.

We value your feedback!

You are able to rate/ review the quality of the consultation, as well as the clinicians’ professionalism based on their services when the consultation ends.

Should there be any further enquiries that you need assistance on, please contact the customer service through the WhatsDoc app under “Send Feedback” or email us at contact@hiwhatsdoc.com.