Have you ever fallen ill and googled your symptoms with the hope of finding a cure? Online self diagnosis is now taking over traditional therapy. Doctors are reporting rises in the “worried well” — healthy patients who, fuelled by Google and Wikipedia searches, are diagnosing themselves with everything from food allergies to brain tumours.
The focus of this week’s debate is on self diagnosis and whether it is ever accurate.
These are the statements to be debated:
• One can never truly replace a doctor.
• Self diagnosis will lead to misdiagnosis and further health complications based on incomplete knowledge.
• Easy access to information has reduced the monopoly of doctors.
Participants will be required to clearly state whether they are ‘for’ or ‘against’ the statement and provide their supporting arguments for the same.
If you would like to participate, send us a request at readers@gulfnews.com
