Googled a diagnosis lately?
It's one thing for you to use Google, the popular internet search engine, to "diagnose" every twinge, tickle, twist and spasm. I think it's quite another—a slippery slope, if you will—if your doctor is doing it.
But technology is ever changing and is now being harnessed by the medical community to combat what has always been a problem: misdiagnosis.
Several years ago, a review of autopsy studies was done and the results were sobering. Doctors miss the diagnosis boat anywhere from 8 to 24 percent of the time. I don't know about you, but that gives me a chill. No one wants to be that statistic.
As a doctor, I would like to think I'd never make a mistake, but I also realize that I am still just human. That's what many doctors—even those who adopt a God-like status—realize in their heart of hearts. As my mother would remind me, "They put their pants on one leg at a time just like anyone else."
Technology companies are working to offer a solution for the harried doctor to fill in any memory and knowledge gaps. I'm not crazy about the idea of using Google as a diagnostic tool, especially when the top three side bar ads that pop up are from drug companies peddling their wares for every symptom in creation. Makes you wonder who is behind the information that's being offered. Is it solid information, or is it marketing disguised as good medicine, promising an insta- cure? I think a search engine such as Google can be useful in helping to locate medical studies—where a doctor's real research should be based.
There are several programs being used in some hospitals to aid doctors in taking a group of symptoms and pinning down a list of possibilities. One program developer has been quoted as saying that this program, Isabel, was developed to help lighten the "burden of memory." Not a bad idea on the face of it, since the human memory can be notoriously unreliable—especially under the stressed and rushed conditions of most doctors' offices.
While technology certainly has its place (and I don't think anyone would accuse me of being a "techno-phobe"), I worry this movement toward relying more heavily on technology has the potential to aid and abet the whole conveyor-belt mentality of mainstream medicine. Even more than the overgrown Goliath it has already become.
In my experience in treating patients, I can tell you that no two people are alike. I know I've mentioned that before, whether it's reactions to medications or susceptibility to environmental factors. Every patient presents, in symptoms as well as their ability to explain what they're feeling, in different ways.
I recommend we don't stray too far from good old-fashioned medicine, which includes continuing education on recent medical studies and something that can never be replaced: An ear to listen with. Half the battle in diagnosing a patient requires the skill of listening. That includes NOT thinking of your next question, and certainly not preparing a box to stuff the patient into. Contrary to popular TV shows, medicine can be a messy, non-sterile affair. It's not for the faint of heart.
Use your gut instinct when working with a doctor. Is he taking the time to listen to you, really listening? Or, is he figuring out with his head down how to type your complaints into the little Google box?
