Having access to online health information doesn’t make you a doctor

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Recent data suggests that over 60 percent of American patients consult the web first before going to a doctor.

That’s all good, and even encouraged, but trouble comes when they feel that online health information can replace physician advice.

Bryan Vartabedian talks about these so-called “amateur physicians,” and how they think they know more than they actually do. There is a danger of knowing too much information, and being unable to correctly apply what you read.

After all, just because you have instructions to build a car, doesn’t mean you can do it.

Dr. Vartabedian talks about clinical judgment, which cannot be found online: “Clinical judgment is the foundation of good medical decision-making. But you won’t find it on the Internet. It can’t be found in the cloud or the hive. It isn’t free and it’s tough to get.”

Indeed, that’s what medical school and residency are for.

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