Using The Internet to create Informed Patients

Nrip NihalaniPlus91 Technologies Pvt. Ltd.

WHY TALK ABOUT THE INTERNET• Marshall McLuhan predicted in 1964 that our

current and future electronic technologies would create a Global Village World Wide Web

• The pervasiveness of the WWW enables its users have “Access to Information 24 hours a day, 7 days a week”. Consumer Patient

• By providing Patients with access to information, which can be used to influence how they make decisions regarding their health care, the Internet provides the ability to break down traditional barriers of power

WHAT CANT THE INTERNET DO

• It cannot cure you• It cannot force you to take your pills• It wont prevent you from taking the wrong

medication• It wont prevent a surgeon from mistakenly

operating on the wrong knee• It wont prevent a mishap in a surgery

THEN WHY USE IT

• Fast Efficient Tool for Information– Risks– Options

• Pervasive Medium• In Expensive• Collaborative• Self Adjusting• Inherent Quality Check

WHAT INFORMATION CAN THE INTERNET PROVIDE

• General Medical References neurocysticercosis• Side Effect Information– Surgical E.g. SIDE EFFECTS OF A LASIK SURGERY– Drugs E.g. If it is not used at the correct dosage and

frequency, Crocin may cause liver damage leading to liver failure

• Emergency and First Aid Information• Recommendations for Medical Care– Evaluations of hospitals, clinics and physicians– Health Insurance Options– Healthcare Plans from Labs and Centers

HOW TO USE THIS INFORMATION

• This health Information can be used for:– Evaluating Risks– Decision making– Disease Management– Emotional support– Health Promotion

WHERE IS THIS ON THE INTERNET

• Medical Websites– Hospitals and Clinics– Physicians and Surgeons

• Informative and Interactive Portals• Digital Medical Libraries• Medical Newsletters• Push Channels– Twitter – docFeedOnTweet– IRC –> For the advanced Internet User

EXAMPLES

• MedicineNet www.medicinenet.com

• MedlinePlus www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ • Mayo Clinic www.mayoclinic.com

• NoBabyNow www.nobabynow.com

• DocFeedOnTweet on Twitter• Wikipedia The Ultimate Fallback Option

PAIN POINTS TODAY

• There is still a lot of collaboration required which is missing– Within Patient Communities– Within the Medical Ecosystem

• Healthcare Professionals are yet to use this medium effectively

• Localized Sites with an Indian Context are few and still poor in Quality

HOW TO SOLVE THEM

• Step1 – Patients force doctors to provide information– Physicians, Clinics and Hospitals must get

Websites– Doctors must improve their Computer skills– Doctors must start blogging, tweeting, becoming

Social on the Web– Doctors should encourage Patients to build online

community forums where they can frankly discuss treatments --- INVOLVE THEM

STILL SOLVING

• Step 2– Online Electronic Medical Record Solutions– Provide Patients with Personalized Health Records– Patients: Use Emails with your doctors Save his

Time– Doctors : Use SMS’s to provide Alerts PUSH Info

to the Patient• Step 3– Lets do this first, else we will just keep talking

SUMMARY

• The Internet is a Fantastic Medium for sharing Healthcare Information and creating Informed Patients

• The Informed Patient can use the Internet to make sure the care they receive is safe, effective, patient-centered, timely, efficient, and equitable.

QUESTIONS