DocSide
DocSide came to Digital Authority Partners with Figma designs, a part-built app from another development agency, and a launch date in mind. DAP reviewed that code and found only 5% of it usable. Rather than build on top of it, DAP prototyped the app with practising doctors, then specified the native iOS, Android, and web architecture DocSide had asked for in the first place.
DocSide is a healthcare technology company based in Bozeman, Montana. Its platform turns the curbside consultation- the informal clinical question one provider asks another- into a documented and billable encounter. A referring provider sends the question, a licensed specialist answers it, and the response becomes a medical note with a charge sheet attached.
Project Summary
DocSide engaged Digital Authority Partners to get a provider-to-provider consultation platform to market after its first development agency delivered code that could not go live. DAP reviewed that code line by line and reported that 5% of it was usable.
From there, DAP built an interactive prototype and tested it with practising doctors, then specified the native iOS, native Android, and web architecture DocSide had asked for, with HIPAA, FHIR, and ADA requirements designed in. DAP also served as DocSide’s fractional Chief Marketing Officer, setting the go-to-market plan, the performance targets, and the investor pitch material.
The Challenge
Wrong Technology Choice Hybrid Code Against a Native Brief
DocSide asked its first development agency for true native iOS and Android apps. The agency wrote React Native, which produces a hybrid app. Native mattered here: a clinical tool has to keep a half-finished assessment when a doctor loses signal, and proving HIPAA compliance is far easier when the app does not depend on web code.
Unusable Inheritance Only 5% of the Codebase Worth Keeping
DAP reviewed the mobile code, the web front end, the backend, and the deployment process. The review found 11 app screens started and none of them finished, no architecture diagram, and no test coverage. Work stopped mid-stream across every screen.
Production Readiness A Backend That Failed at 100 to 500 Users
The database design did not match the features in the approved designs. The Node.js and AWS versions had already fallen out of support. Nothing had been written for security, speed, HIPAA, or ADA compliance, and the setup would have collapsed somewhere between 100 and 500 users.
Unproven Assumptions Low-Fidelity Designs, Untested With Doctors
DocSide arrived with low-fidelity Figma wireframes for a minimum viable product. Open questions sat behind registration, medical licence verification, and how providers would find each other within a single state. Each one needed a working doctor to settle it before anybody wrote code.
How We Helped DocSide
A Line-by-Line Review of the Prior Build
Before quoting a single sprint, DAP audited everything the previous agency had delivered and told DocSide exactly what was worth keeping.
- Reviewed the mobile, web, backend, and deployment code
- Documented which of the 11 started screens could be finished
- Traced the database design against the approved feature set
- Flagged the missing security, HIPAA, and ADA requirements
- Reported the honest figure of 5% carried forward
Prototype and Doctor Testing First
DAP turned the designs into a working prototype and put it in front of practising doctors, so the requirements came from users rather than from guesswork.
- Ran high-level requirements sessions with the DocSide team
- Defined the user flows and the provider journeys
- Designed and built the interactive prototype
- Tested it with doctors and analysed their feedback
- Recommended a shorter sign-up and offline licence checks
An Architecture Built for Clinical Load
DAP specified the whole stack for the product DocSide had actually asked for, with the compliance requirements designed in rather than bolted on afterwards.
- Specified Swift for iOS and Kotlin for Android
- Replaced TypeScript with React.js on the web front end
- Designed a Node.js microservices backend on AWS managed services
- Wrote HIPAA, FHIR, ADA, and audit logging into the design
- Planned for thousands of healthcare professionals
Marketing Leadership Through Launch
Alongside the product work, DAP acted as DocSide’s fractional Chief Marketing Officer, setting the plan and the numbers the company would be judged on.
- Defined the marketing strategy and the go-to-market plan
- Set the key performance indicators and the revenue goals behind them
- Built pitch material for the investor conversations
- Advised on subscription and per-encounter pricing models
- Trained the internal marketing resource
What We Achieved
DAP’s review gave DocSide a documented answer on what its first agency had really delivered. The audit covered mobile, web, backend, and deployment code, and it named the exact screens, out-of-date versions, and missing requirements behind the number. DocSide could then budget the real build instead of the assumed one.
DocSide had asked for a native iOS app, a native Android app, and a web application. DAP specified all three, naming the language, the architecture pattern, and the third-party integrations for each. The specification described the product DocSide wanted rather than the cheaper hybrid already under way.
DocSide reviewed the engagement on Clutch and scored DAP 5.0 for quality, 5.0 for schedule, and 5.0 for willingness to refer. The review runs from December 2022 and describes the app development guidance, the investor pitch work, and the weekly marketing consulting that ran alongside it.
DocSide now runs a live platform at docsideapp.com. Verified healthcare professionals request a curbside consultation, document the clinical response, and raise a charge sheet for the encounter. Physicians, physician assistants, nurse practitioners, and mental health professionals sign up on mobile and on the web.
"Digital Authority Partners has managed the project effectively. Digital Authority Partners has shared valuable insights regarding the app development process. I am impressed with their breadth of experience and thoughtful answers to their questions. The team is timely and responsive via email."
