Medphone

What Medphone does

Medphone AG is a physician-owned emergency call center headquartered in Bern, Switzerland, founded in 2004 on the initiative of the Aerztegesellschaft des Kantons Bern (Medical Association of Canton Bern) and operated continuously since. The company runs a 24/7, 365-days-a-year telephone triage and emergency coordination service for the cantons of Bern and Luzern, serving a catchment population of approximately 2.1 million residents. Its core product is medical first consultation: trained healthcare professionals (25 staff) answer incoming calls, triage symptoms, advise on appropriate next steps, coordinate direct hospital admissions, and independently dispatch rescue services when required. Around this core, Medphone operates a portfolio of operational modules including electronic duty scheduling for on-call physicians, automatic caller recognition, digital navigation assistance for emergency deployment, after-hours call reception, and appointment scheduling.

The business model rests on three revenue streams: (1) usage-based fees from patients calling the premium 0900 emergency numbers (CHF 3.23/min in Bern, CHF 3.50/min in Luzern), (2) subscription-like contributions from the medical profession / collaborating physicians, and (3) managed-services contracts with third parties — Spitex home care, Vitatel personal emergency response, Pallifon/Palliative Bern, Concordia health insurance (via ConcordiaMed), Sirmed first-aid training, and corporate clients including PostFinance, Sonceboz, Geistlich Pharma, Energie Wasser Bern, Fresucare, and Chiropraktik Bern. Medphone collaborated with approximately 2,500 physicians and handled 83,000 calls in 2023. GTM is direct and relationship-driven: enterprise field sales into physician practices, healthcare organizations, insurance telephone services, and corporate/KMU occupational health buyers, supported by a German/French bilingual website. A planned end-2026 liquidation was cancelled in June 2026 after a continuity solution was found, and the company is currently operating.

Name

Medphone

Legal name

MEDPHONE AG

Website

https://medphone.ch

Company type

Private

Founded year

2004

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Medphone AG is a physician-owned, 24/7 emergency call center in Switzerland, providing medical triage, rescue coordination, and physician-practice back-office services across the cantons of Bern and Luzern for 2.1 million residents and 2,500 collaborating physicians.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Emergency Medical Services / Telephone Triage

NAICS

All Other Outpatient Care Centers (621498)

SIC

Services-Health Services (8000)

akta.pro primary industry

Medical Information Services (MI Contact Centers) (HLAGALAE)

akta.pro secondary industry

After-Hours & Walk-In Primary Care Clinics (HLAFADAH)

Keywords

• Medical emergency hotline
• Telephone triage services
• Physician call center
• Emergency medical coordination
• After-hours medical consultation

Headquarters

HQ city

Bern

HQ country

Switzerland

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Medical Society Contributions: Financing through contributions from the medical profession and physicians using the service
2. Patient Emergency Phone Line: Revenue from patients using the paid emergency phone number (CHF 3.23-3.50 per minute depending on canton)
3. Third-Party Services: Services provided to external organizations including Spitex, insurance companies, corporations, and care providers

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

MEDPHONE AG operates a physician-owned 24/7 emergency call center delivering medical first consultation, triage, and urgent care coordination for residents of Swiss cantons Bern and Luzern. The company also provides backoffice services to physicians (electronic duty scheduling, automatic call recognition, call forwarding, appointment scheduling) and corporate emergency support services to companies, insurers, and care organizations.

Product overview

MEDPHONE is a single unified emergency call center service (ärzteeigene Notrufzentrale) founded in 2004 by the Medical Association of the Canton of Bern. The core product is the 24/7 physician-owned emergency call center providing medical first consultation and triage for patients. The service portfolio includes multiple operational modules: Backoffice Services for Emergency Practices (with call forwarding, duty scheduling, and appointment management), Electronic Duty Scheduling, Automatic Caller Recognition, Medical First Consultation, Direct Hospital Admission Coordination, Emergency Rescue Services Coordination, Digital Emergency Navigation Assistance, Electronic Calendar Management, and After-Hours Call Reception. Additionally, MEDPHONE offers Corporate Emergency Support Services for businesses. The company serves the cantons of Bern and Luzern, collaborating with approximately 2,500 physicians and handling 83,000 calls annually in 2023, covering a population of 2.1 million people.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• MEDPHONE Emergency Call Center (24/7, 365 days) Physician-owned 24/7 emergency call center providing medical first consultation, triage, and coordination of urgent medical care for patients in Swiss cantons of Bern and Luzern. Reached via paid 0900 emergency numbers.
• Backoffice Services for Emergency Practices Administrative and operational support services for ambulatory physicians and medical practices, including call forwarding, electronic duty scheduling, automatic call recognition, digital navigation support for emergency deployments, administrative procedures for direct hospital admissions, electronic calendar management, direct appointment scheduling, and after-hours call reception.
• Corporate Emergency Support Services (Firmen/KMU) B2B service offering for companies and small/medium enterprises covering simple complaint advice, support during unclear or emergency situations (including emergency doctor and ambulance coordination), backup support for in-company first responders (Betriebssanität), development or review of emergency plans, and coordination of on-site first-aid courses and trainings.

Quantifiable outcome

• 83000 calls received in 2023
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers13 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature6 records

Partnerships

13 partnerships are on record, tiered core, major and minor.

• Spitex SchweizcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerRound-the-clock accessibility for patients and their relatives through MEDPHONE's call forwarding service. Spitex home care organization partners with MEDPHONE for after-hours patient support.
• VitatelcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerMEDPHONE serves as the emergency call center for Vitatel's emergency response system, providing medical immediate assistance at the touch of a button.
• PallifoncoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerMEDPHONE organizes telephone emergency consultation for palliative patients, their relatives, and caregivers in Canton Bern.
• Palliative BerncoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerMEDPHONE operates the free emergency hotline (Pallifon) for palliative patients in Canton Bern 24/7.
• PostFinancemajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerMEDPHONE provides medical emergency consultation for employees at PostFinance locations, offering internal first responders and rescue services support as needed.
• ViVA BetreuungmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerMEDPHONE provides professional support as a complement for ViVA Betreuung's clients and their relatives in emergency situations around the clock.
• ConcordiaMedmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerConcordiaMed provides telephone health consultation for Concordia-insured individuals. MEDPHONE supports ConcordiaMed during nights and high call volume periods.
• SoncebozminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerMEDPHONE supports first responders at various Sonceboz production facilities during interventions for illness or care situations.
• SirmedmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerMEDPHONE ensures 24/7 telephone specialist consultation for Sirmed's clients. First responders in companies receive support for medical emergencies and decision assistance.
• Geistlich PharmaminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerOutside business hours, weekends and public holidays, MEDPHONE coordinates Geistlich Pharma's internal medical emergency calls. First responders receive professional and organizational support.
• Energie Wasser Bern (ewb)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerMEDPHONE is the contact point for medical questions for all ewb employees during work and free time, supporting assessment of acute emergencies.
• FresucareminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerMEDPHONE advises Fresucare's clinical nutrition homecare clients outside office hours and handles replacement deliveries for defective feeding or infusion pumps.
• Chiropraktik BernmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerMEDPHONE serves as the emergency call center for Bernese Chiropractors on weekends and public holidays, treating acute musculoskeletal complaints.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves4 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Market position

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/medphone-ag

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Medphone