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JD Health Draws Elders Closer to Doctors via Smart Speaker

Posted on by Vivian Yang

by Vivian Yang

Replacing typing with voice and video calls, JD Health introduced tailor-made telehealth services targeted at elderly users on Jan. 28 – an ideal New Year gift for parents during the Spring Festival.

“Using smart phones to exchange text and image messages with online doctors may cause some inconvenience for elderly people,” said Nan Lu, general manager of the “family docter” service  department of JD Health. “So we brought in a smart speaker in our updated service program dedicated to elderly users. With an adaptive interface, they can easily talk and see their family doctors.”

With a customized JD smart speaker as part of the updated gift package for parents, users can use voice commands to activate JD Health’s“family doctor” telehealth service to get 24/7 unlimited medical and health advice.

The AI-based speaker can understand a variety of dialects, ensuring most people living in different areas in China can have a smooth interaction with the system.

By connecting and sharing data from the speaker, users’ adult children can access their parent’s health reports via smartphone. Family doctors can also connect with the children to discuss their parents’ health conditions.

JD Health introduced tailor-made telehealth services targeted at elderly users

“Many people cannot return to their hometowns for a family reunion this year due to the pandemic. The gift package for parents can help them stay connected and accompanied,” said Lu. “We will continue to update the functions of the speaker. For example, in the future, children may use their mobile phones to remotely set pill reminders on the speaker for their parents.”

Elderly users can also use the smart speaker to make easy phone calls with their children, control other home appliances, check weather forecast, and listen to the news, music and entertainment programs.

JD Health's family doctors at work

JD Health’s family doctors at work

JD Health launched the “family doctor” service based on an “internet +healthcare” model in August 2020. This telehealth service is tailored to the needs of an increasing number of Chinese families seeking more timely, consistent and comprehensive healthcare support.

 

(vivian.yang@jd.com)

In-depth Report: The Intelligent Facets of JD Health

Posted on by Yuchuan Wang

by Yuchuan Wang

COVID-19 has stimulated widespread use of advanced technologies in the healthcare industry. Doctors are treating patients through the internet and monitoring their blood pressure remotely by implementing IoT-supported monitors. Robots are being applied in Chinese hospitals to transport medicine to contaminated zones.

According a report by leading U.S. research and consulting firm Frost & Sullivan, the expenditure proportion in the area of digitalization of the Chinese health and wellness market is expected to increase to 10.6% and 24.0% in 2024 and 2030 respectively, from 3.3% in 2019.

JD’s in-door delivery robot works in a hospital in Shanghai to deliver medicine for COVID-19 patients

JD’s in-door delivery robot works in a hospital in Shanghai to deliver medicine for COVID-19 patients

Harnessing technology and supply chain advantages, internet healthcare companies like JD Health, China’s leading telemedicine company, affiliated with JD.com, are reinventing and digitalizing the industry for all participants in the health supply chain.

 

The pharmaceutical supply chain base

China is building a graded diagnosis and treatment system in which medical resources including medicines are encouraged to be distributed through multiple channels. This effort provides fertile soil for the development of telemedicine.

Made possible by its self-built pharmaceutical supply chain, JD Health has developed a closed-loop solution of “seeking medical service + medicine purchase” for patients in China.

Chinese consumers can consult with over 110,000 doctors through JD Health’s platform and purchase the recommended medicine with a click of a button, and have it delivered to their doorsteps. With 11 pharmaceutical warehouses across China, JD can deliver 80% of pharmaceutical orders in 24 hours.

JD has also made efforts to advance the distribution of medicine offline.

Physical pharmacies have faced problems such as lack of bargaining power, paying higher operating and procurement costs at a smaller scale, and having limited market insights. And this is where JD Medicine Procurement comes in.

JD Medicine Procurement (yao.jd.com) is a B2B pharmaceuticals wholesale trading platform which creates an effective digital channel to connect upstream pharmaceutical suppliers and retail drug stores.

“Clients on the platform are mainly one-unit pharmacies, small and medium sized drug stores and clinics under unprecedented pressure in the market competing with larger enterprises,” said Xinyuan Zhou, head of JD Pharmaceutical Procurement and general manager of Channel Innovation at JD Health. “Nearly half of the pharmacies selling on JD are from third and fourth or lower-tier markets.”

JD Medicine Procurement app

JD Medicine Procurement app

Similar to a consumer-facing e-commerce site, marketing campaigns such as flash sales, lucky draws and livestreams are common on the JD Medicine Procurement platform. During a livestream with Venturepharma last July, the pharma sold nearly RMB 2 million yuan in just one hour.

As of the end of 2020, there have been more than 220,000 clients on JD Medicine Procurement, placing a total of over a million orders every month. On Singles Day (Nov.11, 2020), sales of the platform were almost three times that of the same day last year.

“The digital supply chain not only improves of circulation efficiency and the expansion of service scenarios for the healthcare industry, but also further strengthens the relationship between the industry and consumers for rapid growth,” said Zhou.

 

Customized solutions for patients and doctors

JD Health also connect its services with IoT devices and provides a smart health management experience.

Most recently, JD Health released the smart speaker “Family Doctor Guardian Star”. It connects the telemedicine service program “Family Doctor” to the smart device so that customers can use voice commands to call Internet hospital doctors and make face-to-face appointments.

At the CNBC East Tech West conference held in Guangzhou last November, Lijun Xin, CEO of JD Health mentioned another example: When a patient was using an Omron blood pressure meter during exercise, his blood pressure registered as abnormal.

“The patient didn’t know it, but our doctor knew and called him. That’s because the data was immediately transferred from the meter to his doctor through IoT,” said Xin.

Lijun Xin (left), CEO of JD Health and Evelyn Cheng (right), CNBC Beijing correspondent

Lijun Xin (left), CEO of JD Health and Evelyn Cheng (right), CNBC Beijing correspondent

Advanced technologies such as IoT and 5G are already changing the healthcare industry, from health monitoring to disease prevention, to diagnosis, surgery, and daily health management. AI and big data are also contributing to the healthy development of the industry, thanks to JD.

The AI-based prescription review and analysis system “PharmCOO” (pharma chief operating officer) is already being applied in hospitals in Beijing, Hebi, Beihai and other cities. Based on the vast database of pharmaceutical knowledge from the Third Hospital of Peking University, the system can optimize the clinical prescription procedure, thus ensure the safety of patients. Most recently, Haidian district in Beijing announced to build an AI prescription review center with the help of JD Health in November, the center is expected to be Beijing’s first pharmaceutical service platform powered by internet technology.

Lijun Xin, CEO of JD Health (left) and Jintao Li, director of Haidian Health Commission (right) signs agreement in November 2020

Lijun Xin, CEO of JD Health (left) and Jintao Li, director of Haidian Health Commission (right) signs agreement in November 2020

“One of the most important functions of PharmCOO is that it can review a doctors’ prescription before it goes to the pharmacist, and provide assistance for both doctors and pharmacists, making sure there are no contradictions between medication, and correct dosage,” said Dongyuan Wang, general manager of intelligent medical services at JD Health.

“It also has great application value for the improvement of the national health insurance system, for example, by advising the right dosage.”

The income of hospitals in China previously mainly came from drug sales. Driven by financial self-interest, doctors may diagnose as many conditions as possible and over-prescribe. Since 2009, “separation of prescribing and dispensing” has been one of the core tenets of China’s healthcare reformation.

“With PharmCOO, prescriptions will be able to be directed to external pharmacies, be connected with social couriers and delivered to patients’ doorsteps, or circulated to pick-up lockers or community compounds, energizing the retail market and providing convenience for patients,” said Wang.

 

Smart solutions for hospitals

JD Health has also already made it possible to duplicate the “internet + medical treatment” model for offline hospitals, using technologies including cloud computing, AI, IoT and its supply chain ability.

By helping hospitals build a system that integrates medical services and data, JD Health makes it possible for a series of clinic functions such as registration, consultation and prescription and drug purchase to all be done online.

Last December, Nankai-JD Internet Hospital was launched, in collaboration with the AAA hospital Tianjin Nankai Hospital (also known as Tianjin Hospital of Integrated Traditional Chinese and Western Medicine). Patients can enjoy services including revisit and prescription online, and online payment via health insurance. JD’s logistics advantage also enables home delivery of medicines within half of a day.

Patients can also enjoy additional services, such as making an appointment for a health examination, Traditional Chinese Medicine and home service.

Nankai-JD Internet Hospital app

Nankai-JD Internet Hospital app

“We also analyze research data and match the analysis with clinics, thus guiding the upgrade of clinic skills,” said Hongtao Xing from JD Health’s intelligent medical services team.

In Beihai, JD Health will build an electronic health information platform, a health big data center, an electronic health card platform and six applications, including: smart hospitals, smart medical treatment combination, medical supply chain, a smart doctor project, a family doctor project and a public health project.

“For example, by building the electronic health card platform, we hope to get electronic medical record (EMR) and health record combined,” said Xing. “The platform will also break the long existing walls among hospitals, to bring isolated data together for a more digitalized medical system.”

In addition, as early as 2019, JD extended its AI powered customer service to hospitals, and launched the medical care customer service via West China 2nd Hospital (affiliated to Sichuan University) WeChat public account. AI algorithms automatically triage patients based on their descriptions and respond to frequent and repetitive queries, such as how to get a number to line up, which department of the hospital to go to, the doctor’s schedule, and more.

JD Health is making continuous efforts to promote the further use of cutting-edge technologies to innovative the development of the healthcare industry, and to provide more easy-to-access, convenient, high-quality and affordable medical and health products and services.

 

(yuchuan.wang@jd.com)

PG Mall Joins JD Worldwide to Bring Malaysian Products to China

Posted on by Rachel Liu

by Rachel Liu

PG Mall, a leading Malaysian online retailer, joined JD Worldwide on January 27th to directly sell products to Chinese consumers. Over 10,000 sellers and over 1 million products, such as bird’s nest and durian products, will be launched on JD Worldwide in the next few years.

“Since the pandemic outbreak, the global economy has been facing challenges, and Malaysian enterprises are no exception, especially the small enterprises,” said Dato’ Wira Louis Ng, Founder and Executive Chairman of PG Mall. “They need to explore new markets around the world. Through the partnership with JD Worldwide, we would like to help the small enterprises extend their markets and resume operations.”

“We are excited to bring PG Mall on JD Worldwide,” said Luke Liu, general manager of business development of JD Worldwide. “This partnership will allow JD customers to enjoy more local Malaysian products and enrich the product category on JD Worldwide. We will put in more resources and efforts to support overseas merchants to improve their performance in the Chinese market.”

“We are excited to bring PG Mall on JD Worldwide,

PG Mall is a fast-growing ecommerce platform in Malaysia, and has also been ranked as the third most visited online marketplace among foreign-owned online marketplaces in the country by meta-search website iPrice.

This partnership follows JD’s efforts last November to directly source products from popular platforms including Rakuten, Kintetsu, AUTOBACS, SOLETRADER and more. The direct source project allows JD Worldwide to transfer orders to its partners to send products directly from overseas without third-party transit, enabling customers to enjoy authentic, new products from all over the world as quickly as possible. Partners can also add a new sales channel in China with lower cost on logistics and warehousing.

Last December, JD Worldwide also welcomed the Malaysia Overseas Flagship store, under the witness of Malaysian Ambassador to China, Mr. Raja Dato’ Nushirwan Zainal Abidin. The Malaysia Overseas Flagship Store will introduce nearly 1,000 products from over 60 Malaysian brands, such as instant bird’s nest soup, Musang King durian coffee, curry and coconut milk, which are highly popular among Chinese consumers.

Any shopping malls, e-commerce platforms or brands interested in tapping into China’s market through JD Worldwide can apply via https://www.jd.hk/cooperation_en or by emailing worldwide@jd.com.

 

(liuchang61@jd.com)

JD’s Kevin Jiang Talks Fashion’s Digital Transformation on NRF Panel

Posted on by Ella Kidron

by Ella Kidron

According to Kevin Jiang, president of international business, JD Fashion and Lifestyle, in the past year, customers are moving from buying standard and less expensive pieces to more expensive and sophisticated items.

Roughly one year since the outbreak of COVID-19, the global retail industry has been turned on its head. This is particularly true in fashion, which has been one of the hardest hit sectors. COVID-19 is one of factors driving brands – even the most traditional of luxury brands – to go digital. JD, as an e-commerce company backed by a strong supply chain is contributing to this effort to move online, as well as to go omnichannel.

This was the focal point of a panel JD recently participated on during the National Retail Federation (NRF) Chapter One event held entirely online from Jan. 12-22 in place of NRF’s annual Retail’s Big Show. The panel was moderated by Chris Field, a retail analyst and the managing editor of Retail Connections. Jiang, as well as Karin Tracy, Head of Industry, Facebook and Jessica Murphy, Co-founder and Chief Customer Officer, True Fit, were the featured panelists.

Chris Field (top left), Jessica Murphy (bottom left), Karin Tracy (top right), Kevin Jiang (botton right)

Chris Field (top left), Jessica Murphy (bottom left), Karin Tracy (top right), Kevin Jiang (botton right)

The panel emphasized the immense importance of keeping pace with the customer, while making the experience more responsive, engaging and personal.

“Consumer demands are very diversified,” said Jiang. In the first part of last year, at the height of COVID-19, there was a lot of growth for household and grocery products. “Later, as people got used to buying online, they started buying other categories such as luxury products.” Luxury is certainly not one size fits all in terms of consumer preferences. This is part of the reason Jiang and the team at JD focus on building out its offering of top luxury brands, accessible luxury and small, niche designer brands.

Chris Field (left) and Kevin Jiang (right)

Chris Field (left) and Kevin Jiang (right)

Another key element, in addition to product selection, is experience. “In China, we’ve noticed a lot of brands and department stores expanding, but what has changed is that they are shifting from traditional retail to more experience-driven retail.” As Jiang sees it, eventually everything is heading in the direction of the coexistence of online and offline via a well-oriented and integrated omnichannel solution. Although AR/VR technology allows customers to interact with products and have a more personal online experience, they still want to touch and feel the fabric, and understand the brand story and aspiration behind its designs. At the same time, online is extremely convenient, especially for repeat purchases. Combining the two allows for the best of both worlds.There are conveniences on the supply chain side too – integration means better efficiency in terms of inventory turnover.

One of the benefits of the hybrid omnichannel experience is being able to help customers understand more about the brands. Jiang explained that JD worked with top luxury brand Delvaux to bring VIP JD customers to the brand’s flagship stores, effectively helping Delvaux land new customers in-store. Moving forward, JD will look to further analyze consumer behavior and help brands to attract more customers with increased precision.

 

 

(ella@jd.com)

JD Health Gears Up to Ensure Services During Spring Festival

Posted on by Hui Zhang

by Hui Zhang

JD Health is gearing up for the upcoming Spring Festival, which falls on February 12 this year, to ensure that consumers can access doctors and buy medicine during the week-long holiday.

Leveraging its supply chain advantages, JD Health has prepared sufficient pandemic prevention materials to ensure uninterrupted medical supply during this holiday season. Meanwhile, JD Health will continue offering 24/7 online consultation services, which will include free consultation, providing patients with access to medical professionals via telephone and video calls at their conveniences. JD Pharmacy’s offline self-operated stores will remain open as usual to meet consumers’ needs. In addition, JD Health has upgraded its “family doctor” telemedicine service program with medical services that are tailored for easy use by elderly consumers.

Amid a recent uptick in COVID-19 cases that have discouraged people from traveling and in response to JD Health’s goal to provide normal consultation during the holiday, many doctors at JD Health have volunteered to continue working.

Xuejun Du, a TCM doctor with over 10 years of experience, is one of them. For Du, an integral part of her memories of Spring Festival are her mother’s home-cooked fried fish and steamed buns of various shapes. This year, as she won’t have the chance to eat her mother’s traditional dishes , she has decided to spend her time with patients who need her help.

“Whether we are working on the frontline or online, as a doctor, it will give me a great sense of accomplishment if I can help more people during this special time,” said Du.

“We’re all working together to fight against the pandemic in the best ways we each can contribute.”

TCM has been widely recognized as an effective way to relieve related symptoms and an increasing number of patients are flocking to JD Health for TCM consultations. Du believed that by staying on to work during the festival, she can bring peace of mind to her patients— a worthwhile sacrifice.

Zhenyi Zhao, who is the store manager of one of JD Pharmacy’s offline stores in Chengdu, Sichuan province, also volunteered to work during the holiday, as she believes she can provide professional medication instructions to the elderly who lack a grasp of digital technology and medication knowledge.

“Whenever someone about the same age as my parents comes in to buy medicine, I would always like to offer my help. Some of them can’t clearly describe their symptoms, and our professional guidance will help them precisely find the medicine they need,” said Zhao.

With increased restrictions due to the ongoing pandemic, elderly customers are often confused by the extra digital processes required to buy medicines these days, Zhao said.

“I hope my stay during the holiday will offer help to them,” said Zhao.

 

(zhanghui36@jd.com)

Insulated Mug and JD’s Smart Supply Chain

Posted on by Yuchuan Wang

by Yuchuan Wang

Edish is a Yongkang-based insulated mug manufacturer. Since its cooperation with JD Logistics (JDL) in 2018 on warehousing, distribution and smart supply chain, the company’s sales conversion rate has increased by over 30%, and supply chain costs have decreased considerably.

Yongkang, a 5th-tier city located in central  Zhejiang province is widely considered “the hardware capital of China“. While reaching customers thousand miles away is par for the course for Edish thanks to e-commerce, before collaborating with JDL, maintaining high quality service on the logistics side was a challenge.

“We can stock our inventory across seven main regions in China through JD’s self-operated warehouses,” said Yuting Ying, head of e-commerce at Edish. “Once a customer orders our product, it will be dispatched from the nearest warehouse, thus significantly reducing delivery time.” In some cities including Hangzhou, Edish’s orders can even be fulfilled on the same day they are placed, thanks to JD’s efficient logistics system.

JDL also helps Edish forecast sales and manage stock in advance through its smart supply chain system, especially during peak sales seasons like the 618 and Singles Day grand promotions. “This not only helps us solve the problem of out-of-stock during sales seasons but also increases the customer satisfaction rate,” said Ying. “Furthermore, because we have the JD Logistics label in our product descriptions, more customers are choosing to buy Edish out of the trust in JD, which has helped increased sales conversion rates by over 30%.”

Edish’s annual sales amount can reach anywhere between RMB 200 to 300 million yuan now and 80% of sales come from e-commerce channels. In the future, Ying has more ambitious dreams to develop the overseas market.

“And JD Logistics will be my partner as always,” said Ying.

 

(yuchuan.wang@jd.com)

JD Business Provides City Service Program for SMEs in 22 Cities in 2020

Posted on by Ling Cao

by Ling Cao

JD Business provided City Service Program in 22 cities with a high concentration of SMEs during 2020. The efforts covered the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region, Yangtze River Delta, and Greater Bay Area of Guangzhou, Hong Kong and Macau. Under the program, JD joins forces with local commercial institutions, SaaS providers and brand owners, providing SMEs with integrated services, including coupons, financial services and special discounts, helping them resume production under COVID-19.

As reported on Jan. 26, in Gaobeidian, Hebei province, JD Business helped a bag factory weather the impact of the epidemic. The factory head Mr. Sun said, “Due to epidemic, both export and domestic business have been suffered. Our orders decreased by two thirds, there was a lot of inventory stuck in the warehouse. Thanks to JD’s City Service Program, we have lowered procurement costs, as well as learned how to operate an online store, and continuously get orders from across the nation,” said Sun.

In Q4 2020, the Small and Medium Enterprises Development Index published by China Association of Small and Medium Enterprises kept going up, and marked three consecutive quarters of recovery. While still below the 2019 level, this is a promising indication for SMEs, and there is even more room to develop. Going forward, JD will leverage the program to help more SMEs accelerate their businesses.

A representative from JD Business shared, “Its JD’s long-term plan to help SMEs grow. We will introduce more resources to help them build sustainable business models.”

 

(ling.cao@jd.com)

JD Couriers Ensure Meal Delivery to Frontline in Jilin

Posted on by Hui Zhang

by Hui Zhang

Four JD Logistics couriers can finally take a break after travelling more than 1,000 kilometers for 3 days to deliver free meals to community workers and nucleic acid testers in Songyuan, Jilin province after four COVID-19 cases were found locally on Jan. 19.

That 640,000 nucleic acid tests which needed to be done within 3 days in this city kept everyone on their toes, with a major problem being how to feed every community worker and nucleic acid tester.

Zhi Wang, a JD Logistics courier who is responsible for furniture, home appliances and other heavy goods delivery, contacted the local epidemic prevention department to work as a volunteer to deliver meals for those working on the frontline. Echoing his idea, three other JD Logistics couriers Guanming Jiang, Xin Tong and Qingyuan Meng also joined in to ensure meals were delivered in time.

The four couriers formed a volunteer team and worked for nearly 16 hours from 4 am to 8 pm every day from Jan. 19-22 in the cold, with temperatures falling below -15 degrees Celsius.

 

“I usually arrived home at seven or eight o’clock at night. Getting a disinfection, taking a shower and then going to bed as quickly as possible in preparation for the next busy day has become a routine for me. I sometimes even did not want to answer the phone after a busy day, but I think everything was worth it,” said Wang.

Wang’s wife, who is pregnant for more than six months, has offered her husband great support.

“It is incumbent on me and my family to support my husband as he has the opportunity to contribute to our hometown,” said Wang’s wife.

According to local government, there were 3,734 medical workers working at 415 nucleic acid testing stations from Jan. 19-22. Behind them, there are 544 volunteers who contributed in their own way to the smooth running of the testing process.

 

(zhanghui36@jd.com)