Patients
trust doctors but consult the Internet
July 6,
2012
Patients
look up their illnesses online to become better informed and prepared to play
an active role in their care — not because they mistrust their doctors, a new
University of California, Davis, study suggests.
The study
surveyed more than 500 people who were members of online support groups and had
scheduled appointments with a physician.
“We found
that mistrust was not a significant predictor of people going online for health
information prior to their visit,” said Xinyi Hu, who co-authored the study as
part of her master's thesis in communication. “This was somewhat surprising and
suggests that doctors need not be defensive when their patients come to their
appointments armed with information taken from the Internet.”
read more:
image: