It’s hard to tell whether a doctor’s qualifications are genuine or not. How to “prescribe the right medicine” when online diagnosis and treatment is chaotic-

Readiness for Remote Diagnosis: A Growing Trend in Healthcare

With the rise of the internet, increasingly more people are turning to online platforms to research medical conditions and seek virtual consultations. While these services offer convenience for patients, there are significant concerns surrounding their safety and reliability. Experts suggest that there is a need for clearer delineation of responsibility among platform operators, as well as enhanced oversight by various health administration bodies and registration agencies.

Consider the case of 43-year-old Zhang Kai. This past May, he noticed red spots on his legs accompanied by mild itching. He visited an online medical platform, paying $19.90 to consult Dr. Wang Xiaoli, a deputy chief dermatologist, who prescribed some medication. After a month, Zhang’s symptoms showed no improvement, prompting him to seek a second opinion at a specialized skin clinic, where he was diagnosed with keratosis pilaris—diagnosed as a skin allergy just previously.

Frustrated, Zhang attempted to reach Dr. Wang but found her unreachable. When he contacted her registered hospital, they informed him that she had been gone for five years. “Are the doctors on these internet medical platforms real? If something goes wrong, who will take responsibility?” Zhang wondered.

As online healthcare continues to expand, more patients are opting for virtual consultations, attracted by the convenience. However, issues remain. For instance, there are often inaccuracies or even falsehoods in the information about physicians; practitioners can bypass required documentation, issuing prescriptions without necessary patient history; and the prevalence of “influencer doctors” promoting health products raises further concerns.

Zhang learned from hospital dermatologists that reputable practitioners should conduct tests and evaluations before diagnosing conditions. However, the doctor he consulted online relied solely on a blurry photo for diagnosis, leaving Zhang feeling deceived. After multiple attempts to contact the platform for accurate information about Dr. Wang and for compensation, the platform only acknowledged an error in updating physician details while maintaining that without proof of harm, they could not offer compensation.

Zhang’s situation is not unique. A search for complaints on a consumer platform showed numerous grievances related to online consultations, the majority revolving around issues of practitioner qualifications. One individual claimed he was assigned a respiratory specialist who turned out to be an endocrinologist, highlighting a troubling lack of oversight.

Concerns also extend to the prescription process on these platforms. The “Internet Diagnosis Management Measures” introduced in 2018 stipulate that doctors engaging in online consultations must hold appropriate qualifications and have three years of clinical experience, approved by their medical institution. However, many doctors who practice online may lack the depth of experience required for effective virtual diagnosis.

Additionally, a recent experience shared by Bai Xian underscored the lack of safeguards. On a business trip, needing to refill his thyroid medication, he assumed he’d need to provide a prescription and medical history. Instead, after simply selecting his condition and confirming a waiver, he received a prescription minutes later, before he even had a chance to respond to the doctor.

With the surge of livestream shopping, the issue of “celebrity doctors” peddling health products has gained traction. Promotional agencies are helping hospitals and pharmaceutical companies create drug ads and coaching doctors to build personal brands on social media. Though these arrangements may seem innocuous, they can lead to conflicts of interest where healthcare professionals prioritize profit over patient welfare.

According to Meng Yuping, a lawyer, doctors practicing beyond their approved scope online could face severe penalties if their actions result in negative consequences. He emphasized that platforms should be held accountable for misleading content and the businesses that facilitate such malpractice must face scrutiny.

To mitigate these risks, industry experts suggest that platform accountability, alongside rigorous oversight from health administration entities, needs to be reinforced. They propose the establishment of structured management systems within healthcare institutions to oversee online medical quality, safety, and data integrity, ensuring prescriptions and medical records remain traceable and transparent.