What sources do you trust for medical information?

A very good doc prescribed some medicine "pick it up at the pharmacy."
Didn't tell me sunshine? No no. Didn't tell me grapefruit No no.
AI said powerful drug. Could ruin kidneys. Mayo Connect said "ruined my kidneys."
One doc said immuno suppressed, must wear a mask. Same organization alternate doc said "Nah, you don't need a mask."
Gotta take care of yourself.

I believe in our God given instincts and we need to make use of them more than ever before, I’m not saying that we should be our own doctor but we need to work with our doctor rather than just following their advice. In years past we looked up to them and believed in them, we never questioned their knowledge and our trust was given without any doubt. Life is rapidly changing and we have to adapt to keep going, I’m grateful for being able to research because there’s so much valuable information out there, it’s not always easy to get the right answers but you have to be diligent and learn how to find the right answers, truthfully I owe my life to research and doctors that listened to me.

@frouke - What has really helped me is what you mentioned, working with my doctor and one of the things that has helped in the past for me is to plan my conversations with my doctor. Some great tips/suggestions on the Patient Revolution website - https://www.patientrevolution.org/tools.

Your question made me think, so this is what I've come up with. Thank you!
1. My own doctors. They know me as an individual, and they have the expertise.
2. My common sense, life experience, and ability to apply critical thinking and understand myself.

These two things combined usually work well for me, but I might add:

3. Friends and family who have been through something siimilar, particularly if they are not bossy but willing to be a sounding board!
4. Trusted medical information sites like Mayo. My husband was trained as a librarian, and very good at evaluating what is legitimate info.

What I don't use: any thing from media, snake oil sales people, too-good-to-be-true "cures," or anything that is being promoted and sold hard. That includes drug advertisements or goofy advice from friends.

Also, it helps me to not expect to get the perfect information at all times. Medicine is indeed an art as well as a science, and life is full of gray zones. I try to make good decisions while accepting that I'll never have a complete picture.

I like your question because it helps us all think about our own process.

@mir123 Great answer!
One thing I DON'T use is Google, unless for something extremely simple - like showing someone what a tick bite looks like. Google and other search engines use an algorithm that takes the millions (billions?) of most common posts from the internet and winnows them down. What if there aren't millions, or even thousands, of references for what you need?

This week's example - someone close to me was trying to identify a "chicken pox-like" rash that we know is not. Every attempt they made at using Google led to the conclusion that it was mostly likely the "hand, foot, and mouth" virus, but experience told us it was not. Two minutes on scholar.google.com and mayoclinic.org led us to the correct answer - a little known but widespread virus called Molloscum Contagiosum. Who knew?

There you have it - not only "know your source", but "know the limits of the search engine you are using"

It all started 7 years ago with an antibiotic that was double to amount I usually took.. blew hemorrhage in my stomach.. and then... I got down to 98 lbs..and have been thru a couple o near death experiences.. finally made it to the allergist the beginning of May and she said"you've been tested for food allergies..(I gave myself allergy shots for years in my 30 and 40's now by some miracle I'm 72) she said eat whatever you want to..I drank sweet tea and ate a soft serve ice cream and late a vanilla frozen yogurt.. oh boy!! SICK!! And then tried to take flagyl which is usually difficult and manageable.. but 5 pills and soo sick.. and then a suppository (boric acid) .. tongue swollen up ..couldn't talk.. didn't want to use epi pen and ER.. and just last night.. ate 2 sugar cookies and cantaloupe (about 5 pieces) and couldn't breathe ..hiving .. allergist says I have CSU..I had my gall bladder out in 2022 and had a LABEL ON MY GOWN NO LIDOCAIN.. and the 2 Anesthesiologists said don't worry , we aren't giving you lidocaine" and as the big nurse slapped that plastic mask on me on the table I heard her say ..give her the Lidocaine..and then she shouted.. HELP ME YOU 2 BIG GUYS- I CAN'T HOLD THI LITTLE LADY DOWN!! SO I had kept a copy of my preop and got in my chart.. long story short.. the hospital no longer gives people stuff they are allergic to..he also prescribed a pain med that had a "killer " warning on it .. luckily I checked "dr Google at 4 AM.. and didn't take it.. Walgreens pharmacist confirmed when I call the next day.. my handy man dropped his wife off at ER at this same hospital and when he went in, they just said "she's dead' he didn't know why.. We live very rural.. I called for an ambulance once and they came and said ..oh we just left that hospital , don't go there.. and I asked for a Zofran.. she said I'm not certified for anything more than a barf bag.. so i said "can I administer myself one.. give me my wallet..I learned the hard way to ask questions..and I have a book of medical records.. insurance, religion, contacts, allergies, current meds I carry with me all the time when I have to go to ER..my doctor told me it's a bad time to be sick..she's so right!! Oh these past 7 years have been rough..but GOD..Jesus is the Healer.. and got the Holy Spirit.. I could go on and on about how bad it is here.. how many drs I trusted and caught them in lies!! Very rarely do I confront one..I just quietly go away.. I read my own charts..I prep with questions every time I go to a dr and each dr has his or her own "book"..it's like a mine field out there.. prayers for all of us!! I say be prepared.. take someone you trust with you for a second set of ears, write everything down , review your medical records (I like Drugs.com I think it is for interactions) and pray, pray pray!!

@scottrl, Hey Scott. I hope you are having a good day.

Personally, I go to my pharmacist for information on medication, my primary doctor is phenomenal and I check the ratings of doctors online realizing that some folks can't be pleased and always post negative feedback.

I ask friends for their imput if I am looking for a new doctor and who they got to.

Google Scholar is lengthy but gives a lot of information on diseases, etc.

It's a different day we live in since COVID, nurse shortages and doctors are retiring early due to burnout. Its hard to start over with a new doctor when you get to be our age and have a long medical history, isn't it?

If I go to a doctor and they are rude, treat me as a number or simply do not listen and rush out the door, I don't go back and I don't write anything negative about them online.

I hope you find the answers you are looking for. Praying for you & yours......

Thanks for the insights!
There seems to be a consensus that we've become active participants in our healthcare, not passive recipients.

@covidstinks2023: Thank you. I'm doing much better after defending boundaries in my life (long story). I even wrote a new Dad Joke that I think will be on TV some day.

That being said, I recently had a terrible experience at a new doctor. I walked out after about fifteen seconds.
It wasn't just their sole focus on parameters, not people, but that's bad enough.
Without going into details, I went home and wrote the following. It's about customer service at the office:

Patients are customers, not supplicants. As such, it's good to keep Sam Walton's quote in mind:
"There is only one boss. The customer. And he can fire everybody in the company from the chairman on down, simply by spending his money somewhere else."

Patients are not simply malfunctioning machines. Complex matters cannot be extrapolated from very limited data. That is foolish even to consider, and the height of hubris to attempt.

Arrogance, condescension, and coercion are not effective attitudes.
In any relationship, trust is built up, not built in.

Compassion, respect, and empathy are essentials, not luxuries.
Without these, I'd rather rely on treatments by Dr. Pepper.

@johnbishop

I agree with the gut feeling that our good Lord gave us. I believe the only thing Dr wants to do is look at the Labs and never look out of the box for your symptoms which cause havoc to your day.