California-based start-up HealthTap has created a website where patients can ask medical questions and bolster physicians' online standings by recognizing their answers, the New York Times reports.
Website Details
The no-cost site -- HealthTap.com -- allows physicians to indicate whether they concur with a particular response by clicking "Agree," and patients can show appreciation by clicking a "Thank" button.
By accumulating "Thanks," physicians can earn social media badges, such as "Doogie Howser" or "Dr. Heathcliff Huxtable" designations.
Awards and agreements also help determine physician participants' HealthTap reputation level.
The site also offers social networking features that allow users to follow particular physicians and topics of interest.
Website Criticism
Critics have said that some answers on the site could be misleading because the site does not require that physicians have board certification to participate and because answers are limited to 400 characters.
Peter Carmel, president of the American Medical Association, said such sites "could pose a threat to patients" because "a medical history is not taken, physical exam does not occur and any suggested treatment is not monitored or assessed" (Stross, New York Times, 2/4).