The recent Mini-Med School lecture series (offered through Continuing Education at the Faculty of Medicine) raises a number of questions about health-care information and how it is disseminated to the general population. The idea of the program was to provide current medical information to members of the community—to make “more savvy health-care consumers.” The series covered topics that are often found in news, including genetics, prostate cancer and aging.
Medical news has a pervasive presence in our society. We are constantly bombarded with confusing messages about what is good for us. Any program that attempts to clarify this information is certainly welcome. But how much information is too much, and can this information can be abused?
As observed by one of the high school students attending the program, the material presented was very up to date, but little background was provided. Medical jargon was used with no explanation. An older gentleman, a retired medical professional himself, noted that the lectures assumed basic medical knowledge, and that some of the topics covered were too technical for someone uninitiated in health matters.
This is no way an insult to the participants in the program. Many are aware of the basics of biology and chemistry. But many found the information too technical, taught too quickly and at times difficult to follow. When teaching an unfamiliar topic, a comprehensive background must be provided to ensure that the information is clearly understood.
The assumption of prior knowledge is an unsafe one. Most of the population is not schooled in genetics, pharmacological dosing and alternative medicine. Too much information provided without adequate background leaves room for misinterpretation and mistake. There is a reason doctors have to complete such rigorous training before even being allowed into a hospital. So why would we provide medical knowledge to people without even the most basic preparation?
To be clear, I am a proponent of programs that make health and medical information more accessible to the general public. It is the duty of medical professionals to ensure their patients are aware of new developments and treatments, and the responsibility of the patient to seek out any information that will help them make the right health-care choices. But providing information without knowledge is like giving a child the keys to a car without driving lessons. A savvy health consumer isn’t the one with the most information, it is the one who knows what the information means and how to use it.
