Would you trust a “check up” online?

With the new inventions and improvements in technology, a lot of things have been made easier and possible. There was a time when video conferencing weren’t possible or when you would have to use a landline to call someone or when you would have to visit the library when you need information or data about something. Nowadays, you can do all of those even with just your mobile phone. Technology is changing how we live and how we connect not just with people but with the things we need – informational things, personal needs (shopping), recreational or social and more. The use of the innovations we have now has helped a lot of industries including the healthcare field. Technology has been able to improve the way healthcare institutions, providers and patients to handle information and data – compared to the old written records we now have electronic records for example. With that accessibility to data also comes a better security to information (with the help of certain laws of course), improve accuracy of reports or history, reduce cost and promote environmental awareness (less papers used), and overall of course is to improve the service provided to the patient. Here are a few ways how technology has helped healthcare 

1. A good resource for information – the internet has been one of the tools people used to give them more information about certain diseases, issues, treatment and conditions. A lot of resources have helped people be aware of what they or their family or friends are going through.
2. Mobile apps – people now take advantage of certain mobile apps to monitor their health.
3. Better access to data – creation of reports has been made easier, more accurate and secure by technology. People working in the medical transcription field for example can take advantage of voice recognition software to make their jobs easier. With that, healthcare workers such as doctors can have immediate access to the report instead of having to wait for them to be generated by certain departments, and can provide a more accurate and timely treatment to the patient.
4. New medicines and treatment (including machines) – research done by professionals has been able to provide new medicines, treatments and even machines to help us to diagnose and treat certain illnesses.

Those are just some of the ways technology is helping the healthcare industry and if we summarize it, it’s all for the better efficiency of information and of the worker and for the improvement of patient care. When you go online you would notice a lot of blogs and forums discussing certain illnesses and issues. The question a lot of people ask is can you actually trust people online or can you actually get your check up online? Don’t be surprised cause if you look it up, people are actually asking others online about their conditions and problems and they do get answers – some people do this because they think that it’s cheaper than having to go to the doctor. The best answer to the question of course is “NO”. Whenever you have medical problems or questions, the best way to deal with it is to connect with a professional (there will be people online that might post as professionals too). You can still take advantage of technology in doing this as a lot of professionals are “connected” in a lot of ways nowadays – including social media, video conferencing, etc. But keep in mind that there will be certain conditions wherein you would need to actually get a “physical check up”. Getting information about certain issues/diseases online is possible; getting a free check up or diagnoses online can bring you more danger. Keep in mind that our bodies are different and it will react differently to certain drugs that people online may suggest to you.