With technology changing all the many facets of life, it was only a matter of time before healthcare became another conquest of the digital world. Never before have we been so connected to medical information and medical providers as we are today. Now, instead of relying on self-medication or grandma’s passed down remedies, a throbbing red lump can be instantly diagnosed via Skype while a live consultation with a physician is only a mere click away—and all you need is an internet connection.

Yesterday’s “Dot Complicated with Randi Zuckerberg on SiriusXM” hosted Ron Gutman, CEO and founder of the interactive healthcare company HealthTap, and Erik Douglas, co-founder and CEO of CellScope, the world’s first smartphone enabled first-aid kit. Here are their thoughts on telemedicine and the future of healthcare and technology.

On 3D printed organs: “No more waiting in line for heart surgeries. It’s the future of medicine.”—Ron Gutman

On Walmart’s health initiative: “Consumerization of medicine and thinking of healthcare as any other product we buy in a store gives us more accountability as healthcare providers.”—Erik Douglas

On finding medical advice online: “Look at the source. Only get answers from real doctors.”—Ron Gutman

On the CellScope OTO device: “This is the evolution of accessing care from home.”—Erik Douglas

“It’s the middle of the night, your child wakes up crying, you go to the medicine cabinet and use common technology we all have in our pockets.”— Erik Douglas

“We designed this to be as good or better than the standard office otoscope.”—Erik Douglas

On HealthTap’s accessibility: “Any mobile device or logging in online can connect you to a doctor instantly.”— Ron Gutman

“The customer in healthcare is called a ‘patient’ although the last thing I am when I’m sick is patient.”— Ron Gutman

On Ron’s TEDTalk: “The best way to connect with people is to just start smiling.”

“After about an hour of running, when things get difficult, I have a good thought and I smile. Then I feel better.”—Ron Gutman

On the crossover of tech and home healthcare: “We first started with microscopes for the smartphone for either hard to reach places or where services haven’t been available before.”— Erik Douglas

On how they got access to 63,000 doctors on HealthTap: “We build a community of doctors who invite each other. It’s called peer review. Every question and answer is peer reviewed by other doctors.”— Ron Gutman

“Healthcare starts and ends in trust.”—Ron Gutman

“Privacy and value are two very important questions when discussing healthcare.”—Ron Gutman

On patient engagement: “Doctors need to provide the opportunity to help better understand what’s going on and how to alter behaviors.”—Erik Douglas

“When patients go to the doctor they often feel that they want to come home with something. That’s the problem with the overprescribing problem with antibiotics.”—Erik Douglas

On telemedicine: “Let people access care easily like banking.”—Erik Douglas

“Target problems you know people have, like ear infections”—Erik Douglas

On why they created HealthTap Prime: “For immediate access. It’s virtual care. You want patients to say, ‘this was easy’.”—Ron Gutman

On virtual doctor’s offices: “You can’t replace the in-person interaction for a lot of issues, but there are some that can be done virtually absolutely.”—Erik Douglas

“Within 5 years from now every doctor will have a virtual office and a real office.” —Ron Gutman

“Ecommerce didn’t reduce regular commerce. There is no shortage of stores out there.”—Ron Gutman

On providing telemedicine in places without internet access: “You go to places that don’t have running water but have amazing cell reception because connectivity is so important them.”—Ron Gutman

“There are more cell phones than toilets in the world.”—Randi

Caller Frank: “Iodine is a personal database that’s collects the clinical and consumer data to create the Yelp of medicine.”

“If you have diabetes you want to know what medicines work best for someone like you with your symptoms.”—Frank

On self-diagnosing: “On the internet every headache becomes a brain tumor in 4 clicks or less.”—Ron Gutman

“How can we present the right data to the doctor and to the patient to help them come up with the best use of the information?”—Erik Douglas

“A Cellfie is the new selfie.”—Erik Douglas

“Steven ruptured his eardrum and Dr. Topol diagnosed him on the Colbert Report.”—Erik Douglas

On how the CellScope OTO came to be: “Parents talk to each other and ask how they’re solving problems. Ear infections are the most common reasons kids go to the doctor.”—Erik Douglas

On insurance: “Insurers see the ability to help people better and reduce costs. In this country healthcare is super expensive. Virtual care can save hundreds of millions of dollars.”—Ron Gutman

“Provide better care and reduce costs.”— Ron Gutman

“I want to see more apps that are extensions of medicine.”—Ron Gutman

An app Erik Douglas can’t live without: “AliveCor. An iPhone based EKG heart monitor.”

To learn more about Ron Gutman and HealthTap, go to HealthTap.com.

For more information on Erik Douglas and the OTO, go to CellScope.com

Join “Dot Complicated with Randi Zuckerberg on SiriusXM” next week for the most exciting stories in tech and business, only on SiriusXM Channel 111 at 9am PST/12 EST!

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