Would you use Wikipedia to treat patients?
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Would you use Wikipedia to treat patients?
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At the BMJ today we had a meeting for our Journals, such as Gut and Heart and we had a talk from Tad Campion, the online editor of the NEJM about their experience of social media. The NEJM put up thei
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Forums » Open clinical » General clinical » Would you use Wikipedia to treat patients?
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Would you use Wikipedia to treat patients?
posted at 29/3/2012 1:39 PM BST
on bmj.com
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*Moderator*
Posts: 696
First: 17/11/2008 Last: 19/6/2013 |
At the BMJ today we had a meeting for our Journals, such as Gut and Heart and we had a talk from Tad Campion, the online editor of the NEJM about their experience of social media. The NEJM put up their Faecbook page after someone else unconnected with their journal had already done it for them. Tad said that lots of doctors use Wikipedia although he hoped for information rather than actaully giving doses and treating patients. I think Wikipedia has some good medical content that seems accurate and we know doctors google for medical answers and wikipedia often comes up in the search results. Many doctors contribute to the medical content on Wiki? So do you use Wikipedia for medical information? Do you check that what it says is accurate? |
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Re: Would you use Wikipedia to treat patients?
posted at 29/3/2012 5:13 PM BST
on bmj.com
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Posts: 1302
First: 9/12/2011 Last: 12/6/2013 |
for research maybe, but cross reference is essential. Any good Doctor who uses wikipedia to treat is in need of a return to Medical School. I think using it for reference, fine, but cross reference with New england journal of medicine, Harvard Medical servers, Medical News Today, and other universities and sources. As a side note the US army Medical sites, Usamariid and others, CDC in USA are great resources. DuaneF |
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Re: Would you use Wikipedia to treat patients?
posted at 29/3/2012 6:38 PM BST
on bmj.com
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Posts: 347
First: 17/12/2011 Last: 18/6/2013 |
I use wikipedia and did donate a bit to their appeal. I would not use it specifically for treatment. As Duane F says it is useful for information. most of my articulate patients will have looked on the web and often wikipedia if they have a serious medical worry. I hope I have reasonable knowledge of common diseases I see. Our GP computing system has a quite good information system. We have the old big reference books in the surgery . But I do look on line for most new information. Although still like the BMJ in print form . One has to keep learning . I go to a 'learning group' for monthly evening meetings and find these useful. |
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Re: Would you use Wikipedia to treat patients?
posted at 29/3/2012 8:36 PM BST
on bmj.com
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Posts: 1361
First: 25/1/2009 Last: 20/6/2013 |
I find its a great place to start when looking at rare conditions that I've never heard of. Once I've established what type of condition it is, or what its more common names are, I can then go hunting more specific information from a more "reliable" source |
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Re: Would you use Wikipedia to treat patients?
posted at 29/3/2012 9:02 PM BST
on bmj.com
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Posts: 1302
First: 9/12/2011 Last: 12/6/2013 |
As a side note Deep Web searches help alot too. Searching the Invisible web. Google it, engines like Oyster, etc help to search the web beneath the surface, where the major engines go, Try this Link Dr S http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/10-search-engines-explore-deep-invisible-web/ DuaneF |
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Re: Would you use Wikipedia to treat patients?
posted at 29/3/2012 9:08 PM BST
on bmj.com
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Posts: 2139
First: 12/3/2010 Last: 19/6/2013 |
For a condition I've not heard of I'd use Google first, usually find that a Wiki article was top pick, and then go to PubMed to see if I could generate a short list by cross referencing with surgery and/or anaesthesia or a subset of those. PubMed is much worse than Google at Boolean searches! (AND/OR/NOT etc.) John |
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Re: Would you use Wikipedia to treat patients?
posted at 29/3/2012 10:02 PM BST
on bmj.com
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Posts: 3009
First: 10/3/2009 Last: 20/6/2013 |
I often have patients coming in with 500 pages from Google and when asked about a drug side-effect, I just tell them to Google it. I am afraid that without Wikepedia, my diagnostic acumen would be blunt. Oh for those erudite tomes of wisdom leading me through the brambles of extraneous information to the the Mount of the Holy Grail of Correct Diagnosis and the broad vistas it provides leading down to the grassy plains of Materia Medica and its interspersed marsh called the Great Swamp of Complications. P.S. Wikepedia should not be confused with that wonderful tome by Xenophon, the Cyropedia which I prefer.
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Re: Would you use Wikipedia to treat patients?
posted at 30/3/2012 4:33 PM BST
on bmj.com
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Posts: 1302
First: 9/12/2011 Last: 12/6/2013 |
John D, But of course, I offer you the wikipedia article, and below links to start, There is tons more to discover, just takes practice and time., Deep Dyve is good, Info Mine, Incy Wincy, all good. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Invisible_Web http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/10-search-engines-explore-deep-invisible-web/ Enjoy, DuaneF |
Forums » Open clinical » General clinical » Would you use Wikipedia to treat patients?
