New Delhi, July 8 (FN Bureau) We are living in a world of information overload that is available at the click of a button. However, health misinformation on the web can lead to trust deficits amongst patients and challenge the doctor-patient relationship, opined Dr Naresh Purohit, Visiting professor at the Kolkata-based West Bengal University of Health Sciences (WBUHS), School of Public Health, on Thursday. Dr Purohit, who virtually addressed a webinar on “Dr Google- Good or Bad”, organised by the Kolkata-based Bangur Institute of Neurosciences, averred that in pursuit of medical knowledge, several patients tend to research their issues on the internet before seeing a doctor. “This can be both good and bad,” he stated. “There is a phenomenal rise in the use of Dr. Google after covid for self-diagnosis. The arrival of ChatGPT has made the information availability in a presentable manner at our fingertips,” he said. “The reasons for using Dr.Google vary – while some try it out of curiosity, others prefer it to get a sense of control over their health and to better communicate with the doctors.
A few use it as a precautionary measure to prevent misdiagnosis,” he added. He stated that while learning more about a disease after being diagnosed by a doctor may be useful, one needs to be cautious while using it for self-diagnosis. It is important to note that online sources vary widely in credibility and do not put the information available into context, he said adding while a symptom checklist is the first step that doctors use to arrive at a diagnosis, they also incorporate the information about the common conditions in that geographical location, the current context in which the symptoms are manifested, the genetic and familial vulnerability of the patient in addition to the symptoms that the patient is presenting. “A wealth of information is added when a doctor examines the patient. Due to the complex interaction between these factors, diagnosis is a skill that a doctor masters over time.
While generative artificial intelligence like ChatGPT has made leaps of progress, they lack the ability to synthesize the information and a humane touch,” he added. He warned about the detrimental effects of increased use of health care resources. Often self-diagnosis leads to increased anxiety and fear. “Cyberchondria, defined as high health anxiety arising from use of internet resources, is on the rise. It is the belief of having a serious disease, often without a matching medical condition,” he stated. “On the other hand, self-misdiagnosis is also a danger, as it often results in people not seeking treatment. Cyberchondria often results in increased stress on both the patient and doctors, and increased costs for treatment that may not be necessary,” he said. “It’s crucial to improve health literacy so that patients can navigate the medical landscape with confidence. So, improving health literacy is like giving them a GPS to navigate their way to better health,” he averred.
Experts cautioned that determining the exact percentage of reliable health information on the web and social media is like finding a rare unicorn in a haystack made of cat videos. It’s challenging to find reliable sources amidst the abundance of unreliable information. For every trustworthy source, there’s also misleading or sensationalized content. So, it’s essential to approach everything with scepticism and fact-checking. “One must remember, Dr. Google doesn’t have a medical degree,” they added. To fight this battle of health-related misinformation on the web effectively, the experts emphasised that one needs to become a truth-seeking ninja in the virtual world of chaos. They advised people to develop critical thinking skills, fact-check the information that one come across, and rely on reputable sources like one’s doctor for guidance.