Team Makes You Better: Evidence from Online Medical Consultation Platforms

Practice- and Policy-Oriented Abstract Our study of online medical consultation platforms shows that, when physicians work in virtual teams, they perform better even in their individual patient consultations. This improvement occurs primarily through peer effects: physicians are motivated to work harder when they can observe their teammates’ performance. The findings from our study offer valuable insights for the design and operation of online medical consultation (OMC) platforms. Specifically, whereas the rise of OMC platforms has significantly improved the connectivity among patients and physicians by reducing or even eliminating certain frictions in patient–physician encounters, there remain major challenges as to how to effectively match patients and physicians and facilitate value creation for both sides given the overall supply shortage of physicians. Our analysis indicates that team consultation may complement rather than cannibalize individual consultation. Whereas our research focuses on the healthcare sector, these insights apply broadly to other contexts (e.g., open-source software development and massive open online course platforms) in which professionals can form voluntary teams. The key is to carefully balance individual work with teamwork, providing the right tools and incentives for collaboration.