Patient/physician Relationship - the Effect of the Internet

PATIENT/PHYSICIAN RELATIONSHIP-THE EFFECT OF THE INTERNET

Abstract

Physicians have always considered themselves the only ones with answers related to health problems. In today's world, the Internet has come along to challenge physicians. The Internet has made information once available only to the trained and licensed physician, to anyone that can type a few words into a search engine. Some people are becoming patients of the Internet first, and the primary doctor's second. Many use the information gathered on the Internet to research the severity of their symptoms and to better communicate with their physician; but many are using this information to self-diagnose and treat themselves, making this new found knowledge a double-edged weapon. There is no doubt that the wealth of health information online has contributed to a more informed patient, but the Internet should never substitute the expertise of a health professional. Even if doctors are not always perfect, they certainly have more experience at saving lives than the Internet does.

Health Information Technology Effects on Physician-Patient Care

With the cost of healthcare on the rise, as well as the difficulty of being able to directly speak with, or set up prompt appointments with physicians, it is no wonder that in recent years, the Internet has proven to be a powerful and very popular medium for distributing health information to millions of individuals around the world. According to Jackie L. Boucher in her 2001 editorial for Diabetes Spectrum, Vol. 23, "Technology has been changing health care for more than a century, and with each new technological advancement-be it the telephone, e-mail, the Internet, electronic health records (EHRs), personal health records (PHRs), or social media, there has been both celebration and apprehension". The impact of this information and its reliability on the authenticity of the healthcare information found in the numerous Web-based information pages, has become a great concern to physicians when their patients come armed with what they believe is accurate information on symptoms they had researched. The patient becomes disappointed with their physician if or when he refuses to accept their newly found knowledge and cannot come to an agreement in the treatment method (Gerber & Eiser, 2001). This situation may cause a disturbance in the delicate balance of the patient-physician relationship.

Pearl Jacobson (2007) mentions that studies have shown "how the Internet affects patients' experience of empowerment within the clinical encounter" creating mixed outcomes. Physicians need not feel threatened by this type of patient but rather be aware of this Internet trend and be prepared to interact with their internet-savvy patients. This new-found internet knowledge can be a double-edged weapon, so it is always best to let the physician diagnose the symptoms and then discuss the treatment with the patient in order to have better control of your health.

It is important for the physician to acknowledge the existence of this accessible medical knowledge. The physician should listen to the patient and evaluate the information that the patient is presenting him with. This type of patient/physician communication makes patients feel more at ease in the consultation room, as well as making them feel that they are "on the same page" with their doctor. It is possible that in some cases the web-educated patient may be using the gathered information not to participate in the actual decision-making process, but rather to better understand why a particular treatment or process is necessary and to possibly gather information that he/she would have gone to another physician for a "second-opinion"(Lee & Fox, 2000).

It has been speculated that possibly eighty percent of American users of the Internet, or about 113 million of the adult population have consulted about their health and healthcare online in 2005 alone (Jacobson, 2007). The Internet has made it very convenient for the internet-savvy patient to access healthcare information at any hour of the day. The possibility of the well-informed patient sharing the information that they have obtained in the Internet, at times, makes it easier for the physician to explain and recommend a method of treatment by making the decision making a shared responsibility between patient and physician. To be able to establish this relationship, and achieve the desired results, the physician must be open to discuss the information found by their patients on the Internet and be prepared to offer different treatment options that may not have been recommended if the patient had not learned about them from the Internet (Gerber & Eiser, 2001). The results obtained from this "sharing" can lead to a more close relationship between patient and physician.

With information found on sites such as WebMD, Mayo Clinic, Symptom Checker, and Family Doctor, to name a few, some patients are using the information found in these sites as advice, support and services (Katz & Rice, 2000) to