ZoomDoc, a new GP on-demand service, has launched a crowdfunding campaign on Seedrs to raise GBP500,000.
Founded by practicing NHS GP, Dr Kenny Livingstone, ZoomDoc allows users to instantly book a GP to arrive at their preferred location within one hour. The service comes in response to a growing NHS GP shortage, with frustrated patients having to wait for weeks before they can be seen by their local surgery. It is also providing an alternative source of income to doctors, a significant number of whom have stated their plans to leave the NHS within the next few years.
ZoomDoc is the only doctor on demand service designed and operated by general practitioners and offering only fully qualified GPs working within NHS practices throughout the UK.
The app, soft-launched in March 2017, has received a warm reception in the consumer healthcare market, with more than 5,000 downloads and 2,000 registered users. Patients, ranging from families with new-born babies to the elderly, have been signing up and booking multiple visits since launch. The app has also received five-star reviews on Facebook and the Appstore ‘development lab’.
The purpose of the campaign on Seedrs is to execute ZoomDoc’s growth strategy, including the recruitment of further staff to take the business forward and investment in marketing to increase app downloads. Funding will also be aimed at targeting specific UK regions where the service has strong GP coverage and to grow the network of GPs nationwide.
Alongside Dr Livingstone, ZoomDoc has a very strong top management team in place, including Matthew Hagger and Eugene Kouumdjieff, the company’s Chief Technology Officers, as well as three non-executive directors: Paul Landau, the founder and former CEO of Fitbug, one the pioneers of the ‘wearables’ category and Julian Harrison, Co-Founder of Pharmacy2U, UK’s leading NHS approved online pharmacy and Ben Doltis the founder of SJB Group, a global resourcing company specialising in GP recruitment.
Founder and CEO, Livingstone, says: “The crowdfunding campaign is a very exciting opportunity for ZoomDoc to take the company to the next level. Our goal is to help people who need it the most: frustrated patients who have to wait for weeks to see a doctor about their present ailment. We know there’s a palpable need for innovation in the state and quality of healthcare, and the time is beyond ripe for alternative models of primary care to take off.
“Having been built and run by GPs who are passionate about delivering great care, ZoomDoc offers both GPs and patients the latest and most compelling proposition in the market. With our Seedrs campaign, we hope to secure the funding to provide us the capital we need to build further in terms of expanding tech and marketing support.”
