We urge you to be cautious about asking health questions online, including participating in online discussion groups on health topics. In addition to the caveats about visiting online health sites in general, remember the following:
- People who respond to your questions or posts may or may not be health professionals and may give you misleading or erroneous advice.
- Online "professional answerers" may put their names and credentials, but more often than not they have an anonymous alias. One website reports that the following individual is a board-certified pediatrician:
" 'I have been in private practice for 15 years, the emergency room for two years, and have served as the Assistant Surgeon General for the Medical Board for the State of Georgia.' writes Bessey52 in her profile."
While this is quite possibly true, there is no way of verifying the credentials for an eponym such as Bessey52.
- Parents of children with chronic illnesses can be expert resources on caring for a child with that illness, but be wary of parents who claim they can diagnose or treat your child as well (especially when just based on your written description), or that you are treating your child incorrectly. Remember that medical conditions, such as leukemia, autism, or asthma, have different subtypes which are treated differently. A parent may share their child's treatment regimen with you, but it may not be right for your child.
- Just as many pediatric diagnoses cannot be established over the phone but require an office visit, much personalized pediatric advice cannot be done over the Internet without first seeing the child.
- Authorship is usually much more nebulous in online question-and-answer sessions than in published website articles. Some websites let you "ask the doctor" a question in a real-time chat room. Often, the identity and credentials of the doctor(s) are not disclosed.
As a service to you, established patients of Plateau Pediatrics can ask their own doctor questions on line.
Last updated 06/27/09
