“More and more often, patients are not only exploring potential treatment options on the Internet, but using web-based resources for determining diagnosis and prognosis,” Macauley, who wasn’t involved in the ethics article, says by email.
Especially when doctors know there’s a lot of inaccurate information online, they should be pro-active about asking patients and families what they’ve learned from the web, Macauley says.
“Open-ended questions designed to identify alternate (and potentially misleading) information that the patient has received-whether through the internet, social media, old-fashioned reading, or conversation with others-will help dispel misperceptions and ensure that both physician and patient are starting with the same set of facts,” Macauley adds.
