The Diagnosis Difference

A new national survey by the Pew Research Center, supported by the California HealthCare Foundation, explores how adults with chronic conditions gather, share, and create health information, both online and offline. The Pew Research Center’s analysis indicates a “diagnosis difference” that is tied to several aspects of health care and technology use. For example, holding other variables constant (including age, income, education, ethnicity, and overall health status), the fact that someone has a chronic condition is independently associated with being offline.

Internet users living with one or more conditions are more likely than other online adults to:

• Gather information online about medical problems, treatments, and drugs.
• Consult online reviews about drugs and other treatments.
• Read or watch something online about someone else’s personal health experience.

The diagnosis difference is also tied to the phenomenon of people tracking symptoms and other health indicators, which clinical research shows is a low-cost, effective health intervention.