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Jackie Pham Instructor: Malcolm Campbell English 1102 March 24, 2014

1000 Ways to Die: Self-Diagnosing at Home

To a!, there are appro"imatel! 2,40#,#10,$%& Internet users in the 'orl , accor ing to an in(ographic create b! )ator Crossing* +ith this man! users, in(ormation about me icine an treatments appeare rapi l! online* People ,uickl! took this chance to create 'ebsites 'here the! get pai a certain amount each time somebo ! -isits* Popular 'ebsites such as +ebM., Me icine/et, an 0ealthline starte to pro-i e Internet users 'ith a s!mptom checker, 'here the! 'oul match their s!mptoms to certain illnesses an sho' treatments* 1n astonishing 2%23 o( Internet users sa! the! looke online (or health in(ormation 'ithin the last !ear4 5Pe' 6esearch Center, 201$7* +h! o so man! people look up health in(ormation online !ou ma! ask8 +ell, the ans'er is ,uite simple, to sa-e mone!, look (or alternati-e treatments, an to seek a -ise (rom others 'ho ha-e gone through the illness themsel-es* /o' a a!, a -isit to the octor9s o((ice is -er! costl! an a trip to the emergenc! room coul cost !ou roughl! 2:1#,000 (or a single o-ernight sta!4 5;a'!ers, 27* +ith our econom! slo'l! eclining people ha-e no choice but to start sel(< iagnosing online* There are so man! treatment options online people can9t help but to sometimes go to the internet to look up in(ormation be(ore the! e-en go to the octors* =ut ho' e"actl! sa(e is it8 .r*Michael >mith, a me ical e itor at +ebM., sa!s, 2'ith a

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click o( a mouse !ou might en up 'ith a mis iagnosis or or er angerous me ications4 5+asserman, 17* E-er since I 'as !oung m! parents 'oul o(ten re(er to their (rien s or relati-es on ho' to treat certain iseases or illnesses* +e ne-er actuall! searche (or health in(ormation online, ho'e-er the relati-es that 'e 'ere asking 'ere getting this in(ormation online* ;ike I state be(ore, m! aunt tol me that she use the s!mptom checker on +ebM.* 0o' this s!mptom checker 'orks, is that !ou ans'er a set o( ,uestions pertaining to !our illness* 1(ter !ou ha-e ans'ere the ,uestions, it 'ill gi-e !ou a list o( possible illnesses in or er o( most likel! ha-ing to least likel! ha-ing* I (oun this -er! interesting because 'hat i( patients choose the 'rong illness an purchase 'rong me ications8 This coul lea to serious health issues an possibl! e-en eath epen ing on osage recei-e o( the 'rong me ication* I began e"ploring this issue b! asking m! mom i( she ha e-er consi ere looking up me ical in(ormation online ?ust to a-oi that hea-! clinic bill* To m! surprise, she respon e 'ith an imme iate, 2/@4* >he belie-e that the bene(its i not out'eigh the cost because 'rong(ull! iagnosing an purchasing me ications coul lea to serious harm as mentione earlier* 1s I 'as looking (or articles about sel(< iagnosing I came across a post about a man name .enAil >earle, on telegraph*co*uk* .enAil 'as e"periencing (lu like s!mptoms an began to sel(< iagnosing himsel( base on these s!mptoms 'ith the s!mptom checker on +ebM.* 1(ter the results, he belie-e that he 'as su((ering (rom the (lu* Brom there Mr*>earle starte to bu! me ications (or the (lu an starte to notice that these me ications 'ere not helping, rather a! b! a! he 'as (eeling more ill* It turns out that Mr*>earle ha 'rongl! iagnose himsel( an he 'as actuall! su((ering (rom a isease kno'n as ;!me isease, 'hich is cause (rom a tick bite* 0a he not gone to the octor in time, he coul ha-e been seriousl! in?ure an possible

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ea * This comes to sho', ho' potentiall! lethal sel(< iagnosing can be* 0o'e-er, 'rong(ull! iagnosing is not al'a!s the (ault o( the Internet users* 1s state be(ore there are tons o( Internet users online an more then hal( use the Internet (or me ical in(ormation, 'ith this comes the nee (or 'ebsites 'ith me ical in(ormation* +ith this nee (or more 'ebsites, come a possibilit! o( scams an un<cre ible sites that ?ust post up in(ormation to get -ie's an recei-e mone!* /ot onl! are there sites 'ith (alse me ical in(ormation but more angerousl! there our sites that sell unreliable me ications* 1ccor ing to The =etter 0ealth Channel, 21 huge range o( health an me ical pro ucts are sol online* It is -er! i((icult to ?u ge a goo ,ualit! pro uct (rom a poor one o-er the Internet4* +ith this being sai , I belie-e me ications shoul not be or ere online at all* /ot onl! is the me ications mischie-ous but it ma! also ha-e unkno'n si e e((ects an coul cause !ou more harm an mone! then i( !ou ?ust 'ent out to !our local pharmac! an purchase the me ication* 1nother scar! thing about un<truste an truste me ical 'ebsites is that 'ith e-er! s!mptom the! o not onl! list one speci(ic illness* It 'oul be almost impossible (or them to narro' o'n all the illnesses in the 'orl ?ust to (it !our s!mptoms* +ith that being sai , 'hen the! pro-i e !ou 'ith a list o( s!mptoms, !ou ma! see a illness that e"tremel! (rightens !ou an brings !ou to a state o( min 'here !ou constantl! (ear that ma! ha-e that ea l! illness* Ju ! >egal, a pro(essor o( English at the Cni-ersit! o( =ritish Columbia, sa!s 2'hen there9s so much in(ormation out there, it9s eas! to (ocus on 'hat coul be possible, e-en i( the chances are -er! slim4 5Murph!,17* This (ear o( 'rong(ul Internet >el(<.iagnosis is kno'n as 2C!berchon ria4* The Internet can be a -er! help(ul but scar! place at the same time, people 'ith no me ical backgroun can not be certain o( 'hat the! ha-e so the! ten to belie-e e-er!thing 'hich coul cause them to become more ill*

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+ith that being sai , I also looke into 'hat me icines patients can or er online* It seems as i( o-er the counter rugs are actuall! the onl! rugs able to be or ere online unless !ou mail a ph!sical cop! o( the prescription to the actual online pharmac!* @ther'ise, there is no actual 'a! !ou can or er hea-il! ose rugs online* I actuall! belie-e this is a -er! goo thing* I(

e-er!one coul ?ust iagnosis themsel-es online an or er 'hate-er me icines the! 'ante too, the! coul seriousl! harm themsel-es* /ot onl! is it about getting the right me icine but !ou ha-e to consi er the si e e((ects o( the me icine an the correct osage* Bor e"ample, recentl! I ha reall! ba allergies an I eci e to take bena r!ll pills be(ore one o( m! classes* It 'as the 'orst ecision I ha-e e-er ma e, I 'as so sleep! all class an it 'as -er! har to retain an! o( the in(ormation taught b! the pro(essor* I 'as completel! una'are o( these si e e((ects* This is one o( the unse-ere conse,uences o( sel(< iagnosing but I learne m! lesson an 'ill be consulting m! octor be(ore I o an!thing b! m!sel( ne"t time* +hile some sa! sel(< iagnosing is angerous, people 'ho ha-e been sel(< iagnosing themsel-es (or !ears claim (or it to be -er! help(ul an e((icient* 1s mention be(ore, health bills can accumulate ,uickl! i( !ou are not 'ise 'ith !our ail! li(e choices* 1 simple (e-er an a -isit to the octors coul easil! cost !ou aroun :#00, as I ha-e e"perience be(ore* /o' that is a small scenario, i( 'e 'ant to think about the 'orst case imagine i( !ou get into a car acci ent an ha-e to take an ambulance ?ust (or a neck bruise* That alone, coul easil! cost !ou aroun 10<20 thousan an honestl! 'ith this econom! that ma! ?ust be too much to bear* >o is sel(< iagnosing actuall! 'orth it8 +ell, the %23 o( Internet users 'ho ha-e been looking up me ical in(ormation (or !ears no' o not belie-e so* The! claim that looking up in(ormation online not onl! is cost e((icient but also better in(orms the! about health issues (or (uture re(erences, allo'

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them to seek help (or others 'ho ha-e su((ere (rom the same isease, an search (or alternati-e treatments* 1s I 'as skimming the through research articles online, a post online (rom telegraph*co*uk, sho's that i( !ou can (in the 'ebsites 'ith the right cre entials !ou coul actuall! sel(< iagnosis 'ith a higher sa(et! right an sa-e more mone! at the same time* The three tips that 'ere gi-en to (in sa(e 'ebsites 'ere, 2-eri(! the site9s sponsor, check cre entials, an use truste sources4 5+asserman, 17* I( all three o( these are meet then (in ing alternati-e me ications shoul not be a problem* Internet users looking up health in(ormation online also ma! ?ust 2seek support (rom other internet users 'ho ha-e the same kin o( me ical isease or illness* 5-ia 2chat rooms4, online iscussion (orums an blogs74 5=etter 0ealth Channel, 17* 1s I 'as searching (or iscussion groups, I came across a group that 'as (or patients 'ith cancer* This iscussion group 'as (ille 'ith patients that ha-e sur-i-e (rom cancer an Dor still su((ering (rom cancer* The post9s 'ere mainl! (or inspiration an some e-en inclu e changes in ail! li(e habits that helpe them become better* 1nother post, e-en sho'e treatment options an cost o( the treatment* )roups an posts like these allo' people to e"plore their options 'ith treatments an make more in(orme health choices* .espite, the small in(ormation the! are recei-ing (rom groups an online 'ebsites* ;ooking up in(ormation online ?ust is not 'orth the risk* 1lthough little eaths are associate 'ith sel(< iagnosis online, this oes not mean patients 'ere not harme (rom it* There is a reason octors ha-e to go through tough schooling to help patients relie-e (rom their pain an go back to normal health* I( it 'ere so simple as to ?ust go online an bu! me icine (rom a store, there 'oul be no nee (or octors* 1(ter talking to m! octor recentl!, Mr*Mark 6e!nol s at =allant!ne Pe iatrics, he also a mits that sometimes he gets anno!e 'hen patients come in thinking the! kno' e-er!thing 'hen reall! the! kno' little to nothing an the! are

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o-ersimpli(!ing the illness* In regar s to the cost, ho' much is !our li(e 'orth8 Is it 'orth putting !oursel( into a eeper hole an stacking more me icals on me ical bills then to ?ust go to a octor once an get the proper me ication8 =e(ore going online people nee to e"amine the seriousness o( the in?ur! an un erstan that not e-er!thing can be cure b! regular me ications* In some cases, me ical in(ormation online can be help(ul but in most cases* I belie-e that it shoul be a-oi e as much as possible* The risk completel! out'eighs the bene(its* The ecision o( looking up me ical in(ormation an sel(< iagnosing oes not ?ust impact the patient, but it impacts the patient9s (amil!, octor, an (rien s* ;osing someone o-er a simple mistake 'oul be e-astating* @-erall, I belie-e that attempting to sel(< iagnosis shoul be a-oi e as much as possible* +hen !ou sel(< iagnosis !oursel( ,!ou are ?ust tr!ing to (in the easiest 'a! out or !our ro'ning !oursel( in (ear b! thinking to much o( !our illness* =eing constantl! ro'ne in (ear o-er a internet iagnosis is kno'n as C!berchon riacs, as state be(ore* Eou o not ha-e to take the risk an o this to !oursel(* The best option is to al'a!s see !our (amil! octor an

on9t be a(rai to ask the octor (or alternati-e me icine choices* /o' a a!s almost e-er me icine has a generic bran that cost about a ,uarter o( the price* I, m!sel( al'a!s chose to get the generic bran because 'h! 'oul !ou 'aste !our mone! on a label8 =oth o( the me icines ha-e the e"act same ingre ients onl! thing that is i((erent is the name* 1lso, most octors pro-i e patients 'ith an o-er the counter rug choice so that the! can sa-e mone!* >ome octors e-en pro-i e patients 'ith sample me ications that the! can use (or a certain amount o( time* To a! 'ith our current uni-ersal health care plan un er'a!, octor bills an hospital bills shoul cut o'n a lot an allo' more people to see the octor an not 'rong(ull! sel(< iagnosis* Price re uctions range an!'here (rom 2#3<F03 epen ing on !our (amil! income* That is an

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immensel! large amount an makes health care a((or able (or e-er!one* Eou can ha-e all the mone! in the 'orl an rop ea instantl! because !ou o-er ose on the 'rong me ication

'ithout kno'ing* The point is 'ith cost mo-ing out o( the 'a!, I no longer see a -ali reason (or people to continuing to sel(< iagnosis themsel-es at home* The onl! plausible reason to look up me ical in(ormation is (or emotional support* I reall! like the i ea o( people ?oining groups to seek a -ice an tips to get better but sel(< iagnosing is not the 'a! to go* +hile there are plent! o( great sites to look up me ical in(ormation out there, the! are not -isuall! seeing 'hat con ition !ou are in an escribing it can not merel! be enough to properl! iagnosis !our

con ition* .octors go through rigorous training an schooling to be able to iagnosis !our s!mptoms an properl! prescribe !our me ication* I ha-e onl! starte taking the path to become a octor an I can alrea ! tell ho' i((icult it is, each night I spen about 2<$ hours stu !ing an it9s still i((icult to retain the in(ormation* /e-er oubt a octor, it took a lot (or them to be 'here the! are*

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Works Cited 1* GEmergenc! 6oom Cost @-ercharges*G Emergency Room Cost* /*p*, n* * +eb* 2$ Mar* 2014* 2* G+ebM. >!mptom Checker*G Symptom Checker from WebMD. Check Your Medical Symptoms. /*p*, n* * +eb* 20 Mar* 2014* $* Murph!, >amantha* GInternet Buels =a >el(<.iagnoses an HC!berchon riaHG Li eScience* TechMe ia /et'ork, $1 1ug* 2010* +eb* 20 Mar* 2014* 4* G0ealth Bact >heet*G !e" Research Centers #nternet $merican Life !ro%ect RSS* /*p*, n* * +eb* 24 Mar* 2014* #* G0o' to Bin >a(e Me ical 1 -ice @nline*G &o" to 'ind Safe Medical $d ice (nline* IJJK<TK /e's Channel 2#, n* * +eb* 21 Mar* 2014* &* G0ealth In(ormation an 0ealth Pro ucts @nline*G )etter &ealth Channel* /*p*, n* * +eb* 1L Mar* 2014*