UK Population Is Self Diagnosing Medical Conditions, Finds Survey

As per a 2024 study titled Implications of Online Self-Diagnosis in Psychiatry, there are many potential risks for patients who self-diagnose, including an incorrect or dangerous diagnosis, increased patient anxiety about the diagnosis, obtaining unfiltered advice on social media, using the self-diagnosis to self-treat, including online purchase of medications without a prescription and much more. Despite this, nearly half of people in the UK have used online health information to self-diagnose, records a new survey by the multinational insurance company AXA. This has called for a stronger regulation of online health content and more health education.

You would be surprised to know that people aged between 35 to 44 were most likely to self-diagnose a condition rather than those aged between 16 to 24 (Generation Z).

The survey reviewed 4,000 responses in the UK, out of which 36% said they had used digital tools to diagnose themselves because they were unable to get an appointment through UK's National Health Service (NHS) in a timely manner. The most common self-diagnosed condition were hay fever, sunburn, and common colds.

This was followed by mental health conditions which had a third of respondents said they self-diagnosed. This however increases to 1 out of 2 for those aged between 16 to 24. “This finding underlines a demand for accessible and trustworthy mental health resources,” Heather Smith, CEO of Axa Health, told Euronews Health.

What is self diagnosis?

It occurs when an individual identifies a medical condition that maybe affecting themselves. It is done by studying medical libraries, internet research, or examining personal experiences. However, due to lack of accuracy, external factors like influences and biases, it can be very dangerous to self-diagnose.

The American Psychological Association (APA) defines diagnosis as “the process of identifying and determining the nature of a disease or disorder by its signs and symptoms, through the use of assessment techniques (e.g., tests and examinations) and other available evidence.” While professional use evidence-based tools to understand a patient's situation, self-diagnosis in such cases is actually a misnomer.

This is trye for Gen-Z, when it comes to mental health. As per APA's 2020 report, it had warned the US against a national mental health crisis with Gen Z and Gen Z adults bearing much of the burden of this new reality. The affects are high due to the impact of COVID-19 pandemic, mass shootings, climate change, and an overwhelming uncertainty about the future.

Strong guidelines for UK's online health information

The survey found that people relied on the information on NHS website, accounting for 55% of the respondents. Other relied on sources like Google, and for a quarter of respondents, symptoms checkers, which are “health technologies that enable patients to input their symptoms to produce a set of likely diagnoses and associated triage advice”.

The survey also found that some of the people also diagnosed themselves using social media including TikTok, Instagram, X, Reddit, and Facebook. While digital tools can empower individuals to take proactive steps to manage their health, encouraging self-diagnoses as the first step in their healthcare journey may not do the good they think it would.