McDonald 1

Katherine McDonald

Prof. Pettay

College Composition 112

2/25/2022

Overconfident: An Analysis on Medical Websites

When a mysterious pain manifests, not only discomfort but a spiral of anxiety can ensue.

What is causing the pain? Could it be a sign of some larger health concern? Many can relate to

this thought process, which may lead them to consult Google and various medical websites.

However, this approach can end up worsening the situation. Although medical websites allow

patients to research their own symptoms and feel more in control of their medical treatment,

independent research is detrimental because self-diagnosing with medical websites leaves

doctors out of the equation and significantly increases the possibility of a wrong diagnosis.

Independent research can result in an avoidance of medical professionals. Patients

choosing to educate themselves can be useful when they are using reliable sources. However, in

many cases, independent research can lead people to groups that foster distrust in physicians. In

Janet Green’s article, “The Impact of the Anti-Vaccination Movement and Vaccine Hesitancy on

the Health of the Child” for Pediatric Nursing, she writes that “anti-vaxx websites and groups

are problematic because individuals turn to the internet and Facebook for vaccination advice, and

these sites influence whether people vaccinate themselves and/or their children.” Many of the

people who use these social media groups for independent research set out to look at their

medical treatment from multiple perspectives, but instead end up locked in another echo

chamber. The difference with social media groups that are dedicated to unconventional

treatments is that they heavily focus on treatment methods that are seldom recommended by
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medical professionals. This limiting of perspectives can be especially dangerous when large

numbers of people use the information to decide their medical treatment path. As Green puts it,

“although it [social media] may lead to parents making the right decision for their child, it can

also be detrimental because much information is inaccurate, and in some cases, deceptive”

(Green). Medical websites like WebMD are often used to offer a potential diagnosis based on

symptoms given by the user, and although these sites do not offer blatantly false information,

they too can add to the inflated sense of confidence that patients have in diagnosing themselves.

Without consulting medical professionals, the likelihood of a misdiagnosis grows

considerably. The rigorous training and years of learning that go into becoming a licensed

physician should not be overlooked. Although medical professionals do not always suggest the

correct method of treatment, the vast knowledge that they have makes them some of the most

reliable sources to consult. In Kevin Mallard’s article, “With Medical Websites, a Cough Is No

Longer Just a Cough” for The New York Times, he writes about the downsides of self-research,

claiming that “the information [from medical websites] may not be reliable, and it could be

biased,’ (...) most of all, it is not individualized for the patient” (Mallard). This described lack of

ability to personalize results makes it extremely difficult to get an accurate diagnosis from

medical websites alone. An excerpt from Anabel Farnood’s 2020 study on the Effects of Patient

Online Self-Diagnosing in the ‘Smart-Phone Society’ on doctor-patient relationships attests to

this as she claims, “many patients (31%) believed that advice taken from the internet was not

personalized to their clinical situation or based on their past medical history, preventing accurate

self-diagnosis.” Since the self-diagnosis of a serious illness can cause increased anxiety, patients

should not try to diagnose themselves simply based on reported symptoms and no other medical

experience to compare the symptoms to.

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A reason why some may consider self-research to be helpful is that it helps to ease

patients’ anxiety about their condition or symptoms. These people argue that by doing their own

research and feeling as if they have found the information about their health on their own,

patients will feel more in control of their treatment, which is important during a time when it is

easy to feel powerless. In Annabel Farnood’s study, she found that in many situations, allowing

patients to research and share their results with a medical professional allowed for an open

dialogue between patients and their healthcare provider, which in turn improved the

patient-physician relationship (Farnood). There is also a sense of loss of control reported by

some breast cancer patients who participated in a study by Afrodita Marcu. The patients who felt

as if online research would do no good in helping them had a lack of confidence, as was

demonstrated by their statements such as “'we are not doctors', where the cliché 'I'm not a doctor'

functioned as an admission of lack of expertise and as a justification for stopping (...) health

information-seeking online” (Marcu). What these authors fail to realize, however, is that with all

the risks presented such as seeking unhealthy alternative treatments, relying on untrustworthy

sources to make medical decisions, as well as increased anxiety because of a wrong diagnosis,

the feeling of control is often eclipsed by other nerve-wracking side effects of self-research. In

Mallard’s article he writes that, “I’m quite familiar with this[self-researching medical

conditions]. When I first had symptoms of what turned out to be colon cancer, I did plenty of

internet research, terrifying myself in the process.” If the patient must go through the difficult

process of being diagnosed with a grave condition, it should be justified with a reliable diagnosis

from a trustworthy source. Otherwise, self-researching symptoms causes unfounded grief for

patients who may not need to suffer.

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That mysterious pain that will not subside is surely sprouting numerous questions and

may even be the source of anxiety. However, going directly to Doctor Google won’t make the

worry go away. Because of the low reliability of some information that is available as well as the

lack of personalization, the chance of choosing a faulty diagnosis is significantly higher than one

given from a licensed medical professional. Why should individuals suffer through anxiety and

distrust medical professionals when it might not be necessary? The best option is to schedule an

appointment with a doctor and hear their opinion first. Then, if online research is the only way to

feel some kind of control in the treatment, open discussion with the medical professional

regarding the research can be a good way to move forward and introduce alternative ideas about

treatment. It’s not worth it for people to brave it out alone when there are better and safer options

available.
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Works Cited

Farmer, S. E. J., et al. “How Good Is Internet Self-Diagnosis of ENT Symptoms Using Boots

WebMD Symptom Checker?” Clinical Otolaryngology. Oct. 2011, pp. 517–18. Accessed

March 4, 2022.

Farnood, Annabel, et al. “A Mixed Methods Systematic Review of the Effects of Patient Online

Self-Diagnosing in the ‘Smart-Phone Society’ on the Healthcare Professional-Patient

Relationship and Medical Authority.” BMC Medical Informatics & Decision Making, vol.

20, no. 1, Oct. 2020, p. N.PAG. EBSCOhost. Accessed March 4, 2022.

Green, Janet. “The Impact of the Anti-Vaccination Movement and Vaccine Hesitancy on the

Health of the Child.” Pediatric Nursing, vol. 47, no. 5, Sept. 2021, pp. 225–43.

EBSCOhost. Accessed March 4, 2022.

Marcu, Afrodita, et al. “Variations in Trust in Dr Google When Experiencing Potential Breast

Cancer Symptoms: Exploring Motivations to Seek Health Information Online.” Health,

Risk & Society, vol. 20, no. 7/8, Oct. 2018, pp. 325–41. EBSCOhost, Accessed March 4,

2022. doi-org.eztcc.vccs.edu/10.1080/13698575.2018.1550742.

Noble Mallard, Kevin. “With Medical Websites, a Cough Is No Longer Just a Cough.” The New

York Times, August 29, 2016.

https://www.nytimes.com/roomfordebate/2016/08/29/are-medical-websites-like-webmd-h

ealthful/with-medical-websites-a-cough-is-no-longer-just-a-cough