Many people check out health care information
and ask for advice on medical problems on Google. — VNS Photo
M was not
in good health.
She
suffered from body pain, swollen joints and gastric haemorrhage. One day, she
started vomiting blood and was rushed to the HCM City Medicine and Pharmacy
University from An Giang Province in the Mekong Delta.
The
42-year-old woman was treated at the hospital and sent home with medicines,
prescriptions and an appointment for follow-up.
However,
after taking the first batch of the prescribed medicines, she did not return to
the hospital for the scheduled check up.
Based on
advice from a neighbour and information that she found on the Internet, she
chose a different drug made, ostensibly in Cambodia. It eased her pains in the
beginning but after three months of regular use, she was back in the hospital,
her symptoms worse.
Dr Cao
Thanh Ngọc, who treated M, said she was suffering from Cushing’s syndrome, a
side effect of treatment with corticosteroids.
Self-medication
and reliance on pharmacists instead of doctors have been practiced in Việt Nam
for a long time, but this habit has got a fillip because of the Internet, where
information and misinformation on all subjects abound.
B,
another arthritis patient, decided to supplement his doctor’s prescription with
other drugs and treatment, including using a poultice of “forest leaves” on his
painful joints. He found information on alternative treatments on the Internet.
His hope
for greater relief and/or cure has landed the 45-year-old man from the southern
province of Tây Ninh in serious trouble.
Doctors
at the HCM City-based Hospital for Traumatology & Orthopaedics have
informed B that because of major caseation (necrosis with conversion of damaged
tissue into a soft cheesy substance), they are going to have to amputate his
foot.
M and B
are just two examples of increasing numbers of people checking out healthcare
and medical information on the Internet, asking for advice on medical problems,
and getting it, both from doctors and patients.
With so
much information just a mouse-click away, many people are tempted to find
better, faster cures for their ailments, from common colds and flu to
lift-threatening diseases like cancer.
Other
motivating factors are the overloading of hospitals in the country and a
mistrust of the local healthcare system.
Whatever
the reason, the practice of “virtual treatments” can lead to “very serious
consequences,” doctors warn
Dr Ngọc
of the University of Medicine and Pharmacy said complications arising from
patients not strictly following their doctors advice and instructions can lead
to or aggravate other conditions like high blood pressure, diabetes, and
osteoporosis.
Dr Trần
Văn Khanh, director of HCM City’s District 2 Hospital, told the Hải Quan
(Customs) newspaper recently that his hospital has been receiving many patients
whose conditions had worsened after Internet-based self-treatment at home.
“Self-diagnosis
at home can become a hazardous practice,” he said.
“There
are many diseases that have same or similar symptoms. And symptoms of a disease
can differ from person to person. Without thorough examinations and
consultations with doctors, a wrong diagnosis is very likely.”
While
there are several websites where helpful health advice is offered by famous
doctors, there are many others offering unverified and unreliable information.
Sometimes
quacks set up websites to sell a certain drug or treatment.
A female
patient at HCM City’s Hospital of Dermatology said she had bought a facial
cream following the advice of many women on the Internet.
After a
few months of use, the VNĐ200,000 (US$9) cream left her face itchy and full of
pimples.
“My
doctor says I’ve got a fungal infection which has spread widely – a side-effect
of a chemical in the cream,” she said.
Dr Khanh
said doctors have consider many factors including the physical condition of a
patient, the seriousness of the diseases and the possibility of contracting
other diseases before applying their experience and expertise to prescribe an
appropriate remedy.
Internet
information can help patients understand more about their diseases, but it
should only be used for reference, and treatment should be left to qualified
doctors, he said.
Nguyễn Trọng
Khoa, deputy director of the Administration of Medical Services, Ministry of
Health, said seeking treatment advice on the Internet is a common practice not
only in Việt Nam but also in many other countries.
“But this
habit should be changed to avoid serious consequences,” he said.
“Patients
should not blame the overloading of hospitals, because this situation mostly
happens in central-level hospitals.
“For
normal diseases, people can go to district-level hospitals, private hospitals
and clinics where there are professional medical practitioners.
“Just
don’t wait until it is too late.”
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