A 2013 Pew study found 72 percent of Americans search online for health information, with 50 percent scheduling appointments because of their findings. Collectively, Americans spend at least $20 billion on unnecessary medial appointments annually.
Here are five insights:
1. Physicians report online research disrupts the diagnostic process, as these results often point to much more serious conditions. As patients consider the possibility of having more complex conditions, their anxiety levels increase.
2. Psychologists affirm people have the ability to imagine they are sick, when in fact they are not. This health anxiety, called cyberchondria, leads people to experience worry and agitation, which will lead to more physician appointments.
3. More physician appointments will often result in more intrusive procedures, in hopes of identifying a cause that may not exist. By undergoing these unnecessary procedures, patients increase their risk of iatrogenic deaths, which can be anything from a bad drug side effect to a medical error.
4. In 2009, Microsoft research scientists proved a correlation between online medical searches and an increase in health-related anxiety.
5. To combat this issue, experts suggest developing more intuitive search protocols for online medical questions as well as shifting the media and commercials away from topics that would boost health anxiety.
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