A third of 400 patients surveyed across two large public hospitals in Melbourne, Victoria during a four-month period at the beginning of 2017 said they looked up their symptoms on the internet before attending the Emergency Department.
Pain in the chest, stomach or back were the most common symptoms researched along with headaches. The outcomes of online health studies on doctor-patient relationships has previously been studied in other settings, particularly in general practice.
The aim of the Melbourne study was determine treatment compliance of patients who had researched their symptoms before attending emergency departments and the effect on doctor-patient relationships within the ED.
The study was conducted by a team of Australian health researchers and published in the Medical Journal of Australia. The research team gathered data from 400 anonymous patients and found that 139 of them had researched their symptoms, mostly on the top-ranking sites on Google, before attending the ED. The majority of searches were conducted using a smartphone. Almost half of the participants stated that they searched online regularly for health information.
E-health literacy was considered as part of the responses in the purpose-designed survey and evaluated using the eHealth Literacy Scale (eHEALS). Importantly the study found that the majority patients would not doubt the diagnosis they received from a doctor, and 91 percent would not change their treatment plan if the advice from the ED doctor conflicted with the information they had found online.
It was found that that researching health information enables patients to ask more informed questions. The study concluded that researching symptoms on the internet prior to attending ED helped patients communicate more effectively with their treating doctor, particularly younger patients with a higher level of e-health literacy. The mean average age of respondents was 47.1. Overall the age distribution of survey respondents was similar to that of all adult patients attending emergency departments in Victoria. The study found that the likelihood of related health searches online declined by 26 percent for each rise in age bracket. Gender was not considered to be a significant factor.
Advice for doctors
The Melbourne study was conducted on adult patients, research shows that around half of parents of children presenting to emergency departments have also searched online for health information. The study suggests that doctors be aware of the prevalence of patients researching symptoms before attending ED and that they be prepared to discuss health-related internet searches with patients.
The study also found that 40 percent of respondents experienced an increase in anxiety as a result of health-information internet searches and the study authors suggest that this also be acknowledged by health professionals during consultations.