Forget Dr Internet, go to hospital when ill

Last week, I was watching an interesting show on TV. The topic was infant and maternal deaths. One woman shared a moving story about how she lost her newborn under very disturbing circumstances.

She confessed to the show’s host that she has a strong feeling that had things been done more professionally by the medics from the word go, the baby would be alive today.

One of the panelists, a doctor, said something illuminating. She pointed out that mothers ought to be especially vigilant when it comes to their health and that of their children and never to ignore that sixth sense.

 If you feel that something is not right, you would rather rush to the hospital and be sent away rather than brush it off. Her parting shot was that women should stop consulting Dr. Internet when they have a medical issue. Instead, they should head to the hospital.

The doctor’s advice was timely and appropriate. More people are nowadays opting to use the cheaper and readily available Web search as their consultant whenever they fall ill instead of going to hospital.

Worse still, some just type their medical concerns on Facebook hoping the roving doctor will offer a free diagnosis. No wonder posts like, “Hey mums, is there a pediatrician in the house, my baby has a high fever for the last three days?” are common place on various mummy pages.

Social media and the Web is not the place to consult about your medical problems. Here is why:

Alarmist:

 Picture this, you have this headache that has lasted for a few days and it’s kind of getting worse. Before you head to the doctor, you decide first to check what it might be and type headache on the internet.

By the time you are done with opening the links Google will present to you, the verdict could be you have a brain tumor and need an emergency surgery.

Object of ridicule:

There was a time some woman shared on a certain Facebook page how she was having bleeding problems since she started using a certain contraceptive. Guess what?

Somebody malicious screen shot it and posted it in all the wrong places and she became an object of ridicule. Imagine entering the office and everybody looking at you with those judging eyes because they know your secret blood issues. So think twice before you post that embarrassing personal problem on Facebook.

Cheap is expensive:

At the end of the day, we all know that cheap is expensive. You may want to save a few coins on consultation fees but you may end up paying more if you end up with a wrong diagnosis and wrong prescription and the end result is a disastrous case.