These days, you can do just about anything on the Internet, including asking a doctor for medical advice. Such “Ask a Doctor” forums allow you to remain anonymous and can be helpful if you’re embarrassed to ask your own doctor about a condition that’s bothering you.
USE THEM WISELY
If your question doesn’t need an immediate response, then going online may be your answer – online medical queries can sometimes take many days to get answered. The sites are a good way to get information and narrow down what’s ailing you, but remember that nothing can replace a face-to-face consultation with a doctor who is trained to look out for signs of illness. Symptoms that may seem insignificant to you may be the missing link in an important diagnosis of disease. You should also not self-medicate without checking with your doctor.
General practitioner Dr Adrian Koh of The Balmoral Clinic says that, on one hand, it is good that people are concerned enough about their health to seek information on their own. But he notes that “often, the information that patients read on the Internet causes them to be frightened, and they demand to have unnecessary and expensive tests in order to prove that they don’t have the conditions they’ve researched online”. Dr Koh believes that while these “Ask a Doctor” sites can be useful, you must remember that “it is very difficult for a doctor to make a correct diagnosis without properly examining a patient”.
WHAT’S OUT THERE
Here are some websites and apps you can use – three are local, and one is Indonesia-based.
1. DocDoc (www.docdoc.sg)
WHAT This Singapore-based website launched in 2012 says it has several thousand doctors in its database, from private hospitals and private practices. The site is mainly for finding doctors and other health professionals – like physiotherapists and speech therapists – and booking appointments instantly. You can post a question for the doctors on the website, as well as read information on diseases and health conditions.
APP Available for free on the iTunes Store and Google Play, so you can book appointments on thego.
2. Tab a Doctor (sg.tabadoctor.com)
WHAT Launched in early 2013, this has more than 500 specialists from over 50 medical and dental specialties, from private hospitals and private, independent clinics in Singapore. Like DocDoc, this website lets you post questions, although it is mainly for finding and booking doctors.
APP Available for free on the iTunes Store and Google Play, it provides health information and allows users to book appointments instantly.
3. Health Xchange (www.healthxchange.com.sg)
WHAT This site by SingHealth holds a free “Ask the Specialist” forum each month, with a chosen topic. Past topics have ranged from contact-lens use to breast cancer and childhood obesity. Just log in and type your question, and it will be answered by a specialist in the field by the 10th of the next month.
APP Healthbuddy, available for free on the iTunes Store and Google Play, has health tips and information about medical conditions. It allows you to make appointments at SingHealth hospitals and centres, find and book GPs, and send questions to the “Ask the Specialist” forum.
4. Blabla Doctor (www.blabladoctor.com)
WHAT An Indonesia-based health social network where members can comment and provide you with support for your health concerns (as well as upload some very graphic photos related to various medical conditions).
APP Chit Chat Doctor, available for free on Google Play, provides a platform for a free live chat between patients here and a GP in Indonesia. It says it has 18 doctors available to chat with Singapore patients, from 9am-11pm daily.
This article was originally published in Simply Her June 2014.