Without insurance, medical consultations can easily cost upwards of a hundred dollars. And with much of Lebanon living in poverty, even those who can afford basic necessities will often be unable to afford medical care.
The majority of people, however, have easy access to the internet. And with a new start-up funded by Seeqnce , appropriately dubbed eTobb.com, countless people can enjoy free medical information from reliable M.D’s over the internet.
A website that aims to provide free access to medical information by M.D’s of various specializations, eTobb was launched only two weeks ago, on January 14. Beirut.com interviewed Paul Saber, one of the founders of eTobb, via email to find out more about the online venture.
“The inspiration behind eTobb was to satisfy the need to access the right medical information and doctors; a need that was felt by all of us founders,” remarked Saber. “This need turned to an idea, and the idea turned to a business.”
eTobb provides a video with more information about its services, shown below.
Speaking of the increasing shift toward online services, Saber praised their easy access and fast paced nature. “The healthcare industry is becoming increasingly web-dependent,” he commented. “With the availability of so many services online, we are becoming more and more dependent on our computers, mobile phones, ipads, etc.”
Over 40 doctors with 17 different specialties have thus far joined eTobb, and all in less than a month. eTobb targets tech-savvy people from all over the MENA region, and has thus far answered over 250 medical questions from users in the Arab world.
The future of healthcare and an outstanding initiative, eTobb has the potential to expand tenfold in coming months. Though it is no substitute for actual health care, eTobb can save you hundreds of dollars at the click of a button, thanks to an ingenious start-up team and dozens of M.D’s. An initiative we can all get behind, eTobb looks like it holds a promising future—albeit one full of colds and rashes.
Who needs Google when you’ve got legit M.D’s? Hypochondriacs, assemble!
