Dr. Web

Nomi: Do you think that using the web as a diagnosing tool is a good thing or a bad thing?

Leah: I definitely think that depends. What type of diagnosing are we talking about?

Nomi: Lets start with physical ailments.

Leah: Well, anyone has access to the internet, which means that anyone who wants can post medical “blogs” and opinions online. When surfing the web for your “disease”, You may be reading what some idiot on Yahoo Answers posted when he was bored. Just last week, my eyes were dry and scratchy, so I went online to read a little bit about it. I found a source that said I might have pupil disease. There is no such thing as pupil disease.

Nomi: Oh my gosh, thats hysterical. Its a good thing you have a medical background so you knew that you didnt have some obscure decapitating disease!

Leah: So true. When patients walk into my office nerous that they are infected with something, I feel so bad for them. They are victims to what other people post online. The only way you can use the web to diagnose is if you have serious knowlege in the medical field, and unclouded judgment of your symptoms, and a reliable source.

Nomi: So what about psychological illnesses?

Leah: Using the web to treat mental issues is a serious mistake. People have real problems, like paranoia, schizophrenia, and hallucinations. I cant stress enough the number of suicides that occured because mentally ill people thought they could handle it on their own. If a person has any sort of diagnosable disorder, he should see a specialist immediately!

Nomi: what if the options are to use the internet or not get treated at all?

Leah: Again, that depends on where he is looking for help. Any legitimate medical resource will advise someone who is really ill to speak to a professional. Any site that doesn’t give this advice is probably not credible, and it would be better to do nothing than to rely on some uneducated guys opinion.

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1. My first supporting claim will be an interview that I will have with a physician, my Sister-in-law.

2. People make themselves worried for no reason because they think they have illnesses that they dont actually have. For this, I will use articles from online sources.

3. People use advice columns and online forums to help themselves instead of seeing professionals for help.

For this, I will use my source from Academic search complete and personal experience- a reflection on my friend who struggles with bulimic tendencies.

4. The Internet keeps doctors brushed up, but this is not necassarily good. This will be the motive for my paper.

5. I will also use Carr to jump off of in the beginning of the paper somehow. Any ideas on how to fit him in??

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Introduction:

1. hook- The girl looks in the mirror, but she cannot see a person behind the disgusting creature staring back at her. It is ugly and fat and miserable. It’s eyes are crying, like hers, because there is no way she can look at herself and not be nauseated by the hatred that overcomes her, every time. She is like Jekyll and Hyde; with her friends, she is the life of the party, the fun one. Alone, she stuffs her face with food to fill the void in her heart, and then she feels even emptier and more worthless than she did before she started.

She knows her behavior is abnormal, and every time she does it, she wishes she hadn’t. So she goes online to help her deal with her problems. She reads tips on overcoming her compulsive eating habits and bulimic tendencies. She reads menus she should stick to, and foods she should avoid, and she tries her best. But she does not realize that she will fail. Because she needs real, professional help that focuses on her individual life situation.

2.background- This girl is like one out of every five in college today.

Have you ever researched symptoms that you have and come away from the internet with a certainty of exactly what ails you? Chances are you have, because the majority of people have. If they decide that they need to see a doctor, they walk into the office with all sorts of preconceived notions that are usually inaccurate. And sometimes they decide that they don’t need a doctor’s attention after all, even if they really do.

3.motive- It is true that doctors are forced to be on the top of their game at all times, brushed up on the latest medical fads, treatments, drugs, and treatments. When a patient walks in with a million questions and ideas of his own, a doctor needs to be able to answer them and understand all of the relevant details. But at the same time, is it good for people to worry themselves or calm themselves based on their own research, which they do not really understand? Is it good for people to use self-help sites instead of going to therapy and getting the help that they need?

Maybe it is good for people with minor psychological issues or physical problems, because they can know what to do without needing to go to the doctor. But not for people who have real issues, and there is no way of knowing that without asking.

4.thesis- The many years that doctors and psychologists spend in school are so that they can look at their patient and know whats going on. There is no way for a person to diagnose himself properly without a thorough knowledge of the body, as well as hundreds of other factors that come into account when a treatment plan is formulated. It is extremely dangerous for people to rely on the web as a medical tool, because they can make mistakes. And they can hurt themselves, whether it be mentally or physically.

What do you guys think?? What can I/ should I change?

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http://www.thehindu.com/sci-tech/internet/article3673328.ece

http://www.cnn.com/2012/08/08/tech/social-media/netiquette-online-diagnoses/index.html

http://pewresearch.org/pubs/1989/health-care-online-social-network-users

http://www.inquisitr.com/287173/self-diagnosis-on-the-web-aka-dr-google-a-bad-idea-according-to-docs/

These sources have information about people using the web to self diagnose, which is what i plan to write about. These sources are all from reputable papers and articles, and I think they are good sources. They are fascinating to read, and I learned a lot about my topic by reading them, so I think I will be able to enhance my paper by citing them.

From Baruch databases:

Health Internet sites: a linguistic perspective on health advice columns.
Social Semiotics; Feb2010, Vol. 20 Issue 1, p43-59, 17p, 1 Diagram

I think I can use this source to write about how people who should be seeking professional advice and medical help use the web instead. This is really the devil’s advocate, so I think it will provide good motive for my paper.

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I plan to write about self- diagnosing in my paper, by way of the internet. People constantly are looking things up, calculating the facts and figures of their certain illnesses. My paper will focus on how this phenominon affects the medical world, and what implications it has. There are many perspectives here: Doctors need to be super on top of their game to answer the well researched questions they are asked, people tend to become e-hypochondriacs, people use self-help sites instead of seeing trained specialists… the points go on and on. I am not sure exactly which angle I will take, but I imagine that I will mention a few of those.

Some possible thesises are:

1. Using the internet as a tool for educating oneself about medicine is very important, because it forces doctors to stay on top of their game.

2. Using the internet to research symptoms convinces everyone that they are sick, even if they are not.

3. People who need therapy use the internet to help them, but they do not heal properly because they are not getting the specialized individual help that they need.

I plan to first make my point, whatever that may end up being, and then delve into some of the areas that interest me. I want to talk about eating disorders, and how people use online resources to help themselves but fail, because they need to enlist the help of a professional. I want to interview a physician about how she feels about her patients doing their research on the internet before they come in to see her, and see if she thinks its good or bad.

I want to write about how nervous people get over little rashes, believing they are terminally ill. But I also want to look at some positive aspects: mothers looking things up about first babies, people learning that their scratch is really just a scratch, doctors brushing up on the latest technologies to keep up with their atients.

And then, I want to look at if the ends justify the means, and what should be done, if anything.

I will use The Shallows as a jump-off to my paper. Carr focuses on two main types of knowledge- deep expertise in something, and in knowing where to find relevant information. Today, people try to find all the information they need online. The problem is that they have no deeper understanding, no background in the field they are trying to grasp. Therefore, they end up with misconceptions and belief in myths.

Do you think my essay is spread too thin? Should I focus on only one area? Which sounds most interesting?

Should I leave out the counter-argument? I want to make sure I have a strong, clear point.

I am sure that I will change my mind a million times, but this is what Ive got so far.

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http://www.inquisitr.com/112106/twaggies-webmd-flowchart/

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http://www.thehindu.com/sci-tech/internet/article3673328.ece

http://www.cnn.com/2012/08/08/tech/social-media/netiquette-online-diagnoses/index.html

http://pewresearch.org/pubs/1989/health-care-online-social-network-users

Im going to use these links to make good blog posts… Dont click on them, this is a work in progress!

http://www.inquisitr.com/287173/self-diagnosis-on-the-web-aka-dr-google-a-bad-idea-according-to-docs/

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