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As well as suggesting doctors might be more receptive to the results
of patient's internet research this article suggests a treatment
possibility for selective mutism which I have not come across before.
Providing snipits of clinical information to the non-specialist are a
particularly useful feature of the BMJ and I can now discuss this option
with a family struggling with a child with this condition. Unfortunately
researching the topic was made more difficult by the printing of an
incorrect reference. The trial refered to was published in 1996 not 1966
as cited.
I was gratified to read the short report by Jelly(1). Over the last 5
years I have encountered patients who consult with me after they have
scoured the internet for material appropriate to their particular problem.
I have often found that they have discovered good and useful links, some
of which I subsequently use. More challenging is the fact that these
patients often gain a degree of expertize and knowledge that is quite
formidable. Often the onus is placed on my shoulders to go back and "do my
homework". In the future, I predict that the phenomenon of "web-wise
patients" will become more prevalent and that we will have to adapt to
this new environment. As in Bob Dylan's famous song, " the times they are
a-changing", and change we must or be swept aside by the tidal wave of
information.
Ref
1)A patient who changed my practice: The internet and a "small
miracle" Di Jelley, BMJ 2000; 321: 165
Possibility for slective mutism
As well as suggesting doctors might be more receptive to the results
of patient's internet research this article suggests a treatment
possibility for selective mutism which I have not come across before.
Providing snipits of clinical information to the non-specialist are a
particularly useful feature of the BMJ and I can now discuss this option
with a family struggling with a child with this condition. Unfortunately
researching the topic was made more difficult by the printing of an
incorrect reference. The trial refered to was published in 1996 not 1966
as cited.
Competing interests: No competing interests