Should doctors be afraid of the Web?
One of the most fascinating aspects of the Web is how it makes knowledge accessible.
All kinds of knowledge. Medicine for instance.
The web is not going to turn anybody into a doctor, but it gives everybody access to a lot of information.
A couple of years ago, I noticed something wrong with my groin. I decided to typehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Tire_hernia.jpg a few keywords describing the symptoms on Google and right after a few clicks I self-diagnosed an inguinal hernia. For those not familiar with hernia this is the picture I found on wikipedia to illustrate it, I found it pretty funny.
For the inguinal hernia, I have found this X-ray I like pretty much too:
My physician confirmed my diagnosis when I saw him ,as well as the relevant treatment (in that case, surgery is the only option).
Obviously, the Web cannot replace a professional. But it is a useful tool to improve one’s medical knowledge and better understand how your body works.
For those suffering from hypochondria, the Web can become a great tool to elaborate on their favourite fears and obsessions, and find out new diseases with exotic names.
In a less narcissist fashion, you can also use the resources available on the Net to better understand the illness of a loved one, as communicating on this issue is still difficult regardless of the knowledge provided online. Information will not replace communication but can help.
Health is one of the key issues in Western countries, from each individual fears to its global costs for the society. A lot of sites have taken advantage of this momentum. If you want to discover new illness you might suffer from, you can check some of the myriad of sites available. Some have quite a tricky name. Most seemed to be providing solid information and interesting users’ forums such as these ones:
http://ehealthforum.com/health/medical_questions_symptoms.html
http://www.medicinenet.com/script/main/hp.asp
http://www.emedicinehealth.com/script/main/art.asp?articlekey=60108
I you are really worried and need an advice on-line, it is possible; you can ask Jane for instance. Well this is not free of course (30$ the advice by email), that is the US.
RD
