Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
At least Google is an improvement. They used to come with an article or ad from The National Enquirer. Sheesh!
The problem with pts who read is that they usually get limited info and have limited ability to interpret highly technical matters.
I've told this joke here before:
Under the new attitude that pts have rights and want to be involved in decision making, etc, the situation may arise where a guy comes in and insists he needs a castration operation. Unwilling to risk alienation and a law suit, the doc agrees. He admits the guy and performs the procedure. ...The next AM, he wakes up and starts talking to his room-mate. "What are you here for?" he asks...."Oh, I had a circumcision done."..."Circumcision?" repeats our hero as he furls his brow and searches his own soul. "Circumcision...THAT"s the word! THAT's the word!"
theres two sides to this coin. My daughter works in an emergency room. Patient came in needing his appendix removed immediately. The doctor assigned to the patient was unsure of his "expertise" My daughter said instead of consulting another doctor or asking their aid...…….His ego would not allow it. He "googled" the information he needed to try it on his own...……….apparently there is a website only for doctors to use for information on medical procedures...……...
theres two sides to this coin. My daughter works in an emergency room. Patient came in needing his appendix removed immediately. The doctor assigned to the patient was unsure of his "expertise" My daughter said instead of consulting another doctor or asking their aid...…….His ego would not allow it. He "googled" the information he needed to try it on his own...……….apparently there is a website only for doctors to use for information on medical procedures...……...
I'm familiar with a recent lawsuit in which the outcome was poor, and the doctor was sued for looking up the procedure on YouTube. I don't think the medical procedure website use is encouraged. Perhaps as review material, but that's about it.
As any tool, web can be useless in hands of a person not trained to think. When, however, a person can analyze, compare, observe, make connections, check different sources to verify information, and proceed with caution, googling can help in many different ways.
Google search is a cuckold to politics & media interests; proceed with caution. You will NOT receive an accurate perspective on matters of public health.
Google Scholar isn't too bad but dang; the security! If you read really fast; it will shut you down & make you prove you 'are not a robot'.
I'm Hyperlexic ... so the whole site is convinced I am a data-mining bot. Try PubMed. The keyword search takes some getting used to but the available filters help a lot.
If I am having an issue of some sort I will do a little research on the internet in hopes of understanding what the list of possibilities might be and whether it is something I should even be concerned about. When I go to the doctor I just convey what the symptoms or issue is and defer to whatever he/she thinks. I never go in with a self diagnosis. Afterwards based on their judgment as to the nature of the issue I will then do some focused reading so as to understand it better.
If I am being sent for testing or additional examination I will go online in hopes of understanding who will be doing it & how it is done so as to avoid unwanted surprises and as may be appropriate make requests as to who/how in advance.
If I am having an issue of some sort I will do a little research on the internet in hopes of understanding what the list of possibilities might be and whether it is something I should even be concerned about. When I go to the doctor I just convey what the symptoms or issue is and defer to whatever he/she thinks. I never go in with a self diagnosis. Afterwards based on their judgment as to the nature of the issue I will then do some focused reading so as to understand it better.
If I am being sent for testing or additional examination I will go online in hopes of understanding who will be doing it & how it is done so as to avoid unwanted surprises and as may be appropriate make requests as to who/how in advance.
Pretty much where i'm at with this. Before the internet people usually talked with relatives or co-workers about medical topics. The internet should be looked at like that...……...listen to advice but do not make concrete decisions...…….
I once saw a new Dr. I was grilled by the receptionist on the phone that they were only taking new patients who were planning to visit regularly(whatever that means $$).
I told the Dr. about my list of symptoms (I had researched), my family history of Thyroid problems etc...she more or less chuckled and told me I was "just depressed", but we ran blood work to see for sure (I had zero doubts). Of course it turned out I was correct all along and started medication to alleviate. I fired her as my doctor after that and found someone better. They also turned out to be the type to hold you hostage and not refill my prescription unless I came in for regular office visits (despite the fact this is a medication I'm on for the rest of my life, with minor dosage adjustments every few years). Sad.
No doctor is going to take your health as seriously as yourself or your family. It's fair to be skeptical of patient "googling", but some may see it as a threat to their cash flow. Yet, they have no problem never seeing you and letting you see a Nurse practitioner, even though you are paying a premium to see a "doctor". Doctors are not superhuman. You may have the doctor that just slid by their exams, crammed to pass and forgot most of what they learned. Same for any other profession (mechanic, financial, construction, whatever..) I think most doctors are good and have good intentions, but there are bad ones too.
theres two sides to this coin. My daughter works in an emergency room. Patient came in needing his appendix removed immediately. The doctor assigned to the patient was unsure of his "expertise" My daughter said instead of consulting another doctor or asking their aid...…….His ego would not allow it. He "googled" the information he needed to try it on his own...……….apparently there is a website only for doctors to use for information on medical procedures...……...
Agreed. Have seen this firsthand as well.
Doctors are people. And while you'd hope that a Dr is at least as intelligent as the average person, the average person isn't infallible, and neither are doctors.
I once had a Dr. come into my hospital room, where I was waiting for surgery. He was not my Dr, and I'd never seen him before. He came in, looked at my chart quickly, then began to explain what was about to happen, that he'd be operating on my foot and that I would then need a cast for several months.
For a moment, I just stared at him blankly (it was 5:30 in the morning and I was pretty groggy and out of it since I hadn't had anything to eat/drink for 12 hours) then I glanced at my wife and just shook my head. See, she wasn't happy that I told her she needed to be there that early, she was just planning on picking me up after surgery, which would take a couple hours.
I was there for surgery on my ear. Had I already been given anesthetic, and not able to stop him or my wife not being there to stop him, this Dr. could have come in and performed the wrong surgery on me, which you hear about in the news from time to time.
As it was, I just chuckled and said "Hey honey, we're going to be rich!" That got the Dr. to stop talking, and I told him I don't know who his patient is, but it certainly wasn't me, and God help whoever he thought he was talking to.
When I was still practicing many of my patients consulted Google prior to seeing me. Often they were pretty well informed on what might be going on. I learned to pay attention when someone would walk in and say "I think I have gallstones" -- often they were correct.
I had one patient who said they were pretty sure they had Lyme disease. By google, they were right.
Sometimes, though, their search led them to believe they had some really horrible illness. The internet can be pretty scary sometimes.
You know, I'm curious to know what the self diagnosis rate via internet help is. With just about every illness I've had, I've just about always been able to figure out what was wrong via internet research on Web MD and other sites. Of course, I often still sought out professional medical help via a visitor to the doctor's office, but still the point stands.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
