Bottom Line:
Registered telehealth provider with little information available online. HootHealth offers only questionnaire-based medical certificates and specialist referrals.
HootHealth Information
Feature |
Details |
Website | https://hoothealth.com.au/ |
Phone Number/ Email | admin@hoothealth.com.au |
Services Offered | Medical certificates and specialist referrals |
Response Time | Delivery within hours. Priority referrals available. |
Price Range | Prices from $21.95 to $49.95 |
Mobile App | No mobile app available |
Operating Hours | 24/7 |
Available Services
Only Limited Services and No Consultations Available
HootHealth has two types of form-based telehealth services: medical certificates and specialist referrals. It focuses on providing 24/7 certificates, although the latter offers additional services. HootHealth is one of the most limited telehealth providers in terms of its product offerings.
Medical Certificate: Medical certificates are grouped into single-day and multi-day. They are available for work, school/uni, and carer’s leave and sent to your email once approved by an AHPRA-registered doctor.
Specialist Referral: Specialist referrals can also be requested online. Once approved, they are sent straight to your phone. Priority service is available.
HootHealth does not offer bulk billing. Based on the description of its services, it appears that HootHealth does not offer telehealth consultations, which is contrary to AHPRA guidelines [3].
Pricing and Speed
Simple Pricing, Priority Service Surcharge
HootHealth’s pricing and wait times align with those of mid-range telehealth service providers. However, most other providers, such as Prime Medic, require a doctor’s consultation for medical certificates and specialist referrals. This is also in line with AHPRA guidelines [3].
Wait times are listed as within minutes or within hours. This is slower than with most Australian telehealth providers, which offer mostly 15-minute or one-hour guarantees. It is more in line with Burst Health, a telehealth service specialising in scripts and medication delivery, which can take a day to review requests. No timing is provided for the priority service available for specialist referrals. This is again unusual compared to other services offering priority booking services, such as Qoctor, which reduces its 1-2-hour wait time to 15 minutes for patients who pay the priority surcharge to speak with a doctor.
User Experience
Simple Site Delivering the Basics
- Navigation: HootHealth’s site has a simple setup. It does, however, not offer all available options in the top menu. Also, information is not always provided in the spot where it would be most important. For example, there is no information on the expected delivery time for priority specialist referrals, despite the service being described and available to book. HootHealth has FAQs on the individual pages.
- Clarity: It is tricky to find definitive answers on HootHealth. While the booking process highlights that all requests are reviewed by doctors, in the FAQs, one option refers to consultations. This is, however, not possible to book anywhere on the site.
- Process Simplicity: The request/ booking process looks straightforward, apart from the discrepancy mentioned above. Based on reviewing the entire site, I do not believe any consultations are available, despite the site referring to them as such. (This is also the case with the BurstHealth site, which mentions standalone telehealth consultations, but when contacted, stated the service had been removed.) The information on what doctors look for when reviewing the request makes it easier to ensure your certificate is granted. Additionally, the site states that it has a medical certificate verification function for employers and confirms that its certificates are legitimate. Based on the review process, this is at best misleading without a telehealth consultation. Employers can reject certificates issued without consultation.
- Speed & Accessibility: HootHealth’s services are slower than review-based services on other sites, such as InstantScripts, although there are no user reviews available online for HootHealth to verify wait times independently. As there are no alternative ways to book appointments other than through the site and no other means of contacting customer service except by email, the service is also significantly less accessible than the average telehealth provider.
The site’s overall appearance is of a very basic operation. This includes customer reviews that aren’t linked to any review site, as well as the FAQs, which contradict some of the information on the site.
Despite its simplicity, the site fails to clearly communicate key information, such as wait times.
Privacy and Data Security
Wellnet PTY’s Privacy Policy Applies to HootHealth
HootHealth provides a downloadable and detailed privacy policy on its site. While this states that Wellnet is legally obliged to follow the Australian Privacy Act, the language is less direct than on other telehealth providers’ sites, which generally state more directly that they comply with the Australian Privacy Act.
The policy also refers to consultations, pharmacies, and other services that HootHealth does not offer. While the ABN for Wellnet lists HootHealth [2], it is unusual for the policy not to state the business entity’s name explicitly.
Most telehealth providers reassure patients that their data will not be shared with overseas businesses. HootHealth (or Wellnet) takes the opposite approach by deliberately stating that it “may disclose personal information overseas”.
The privacy policy reassures the service’s users that all necessary steps are taken to keep their data safe and encrypted.
Customer Support
Email-only Customer Service Support
HootHealth customer support is only available via email. Apart from the service’s self-listed reviews on the website, no user reviews are available online, making it more challenging to verify the customer service experience.
The site states that it is open 24/7. Based on my research of other telehealth sites and the Australian telehealth industry, it is doubtful that a telehealth provider with no reviews and only an email address for support has very responsive customer service. This is also supported by the stated wait times for services to be fulfilled, which are described somewhat ambiguously as being within minutes or within hours. This is much less transparent than, for example, Updoc, which states “within one hour.”
Disclaimer
All information provided is based on independent research and the most current data available on the site.
Telehealth should always be used responsibly as a complementary service to your primary care physician.
Please consult your GP for any medical concerns or advice.