San Francisco-based HealthTap (@HealthTap) has unveiled a major overhaul of its physician-patient social network with a new significant focus on mHealth. The update includes a suite of new apps for the iPhone, iPad, Android and the web.

Since its launch last year, HealthTap has raised $14 million from investors including Mayfield Fund, Mohr Davidow Ventures, Eric Schmidt’s Innovation Endeavors, Esther Dyson, and more.

HealthTap was founded by Ron Gutman (@RonGutman), formerly the CEO of WellSphere, and curator of TEDx Silicon Valley.

HealthTap already offers its ePatient users access to a directory of 1 million physicians across the country, and has now launched a new Q&A service with 12,000 participating US-licensed physicians, which patients can use to securely send HIPAA compliant text messages to physicians with the option to include images, health records, and more.

The initial text costs $10 and each follow-up message costing $5/each after one freebie, which is certainly more than a typical SMS conversation, but also certainly less than an average office visit. Patients are also free of the hassles associated with office visits, such as wait-time, travel, etc.

Each of these 12,000 doctors has a built-in quality score associated with their name and profile the company bills as a sort of medical equivalent of a FICO Score, which incorporates both publicly available information and peer reviews from other doctors.

New features include:

  • Up-to-date and personalized health information:  Follow topics, doctors, and questions to stay current on the issues that matter most to you.
  •  Transparent doctor-to-doctor ratings:  View each physician’s “DocScore,” a FICO-like quality score for doctors that incorporates publicly available data and doctor-to-doctor peer review. Doctors also rank each other on expertise within specific topics.
  • Directory of over one million doctors:  Use simple, everyday language to find the best doctors in the HealthTap network and in the world’s most comprehensive mobile doctor directory.
  • In-person virtual appointments:  Connect with doctors in person using in-app appointment requests, direct messaging and phone calls.
  • Secure private digital health file:  Have full control of your personal health records, available and transferable anytime, in a secure and private environment.

The new mobile application will also add new features to the HealthTap service, including:

  • Private Health Conversations:  Ask specific questions to the doctor of your choice in a HIPAA-secure environment from your iPhone, iPad, Android device, or PC
  • Connect with a doctor of your choice instantaneously:  See who’s “online now” and message them privately and securely
  • Store and safely share rich health media:  Share health records, photos, and documents with doctors securely and privately.