ChatGPT Health

Post by ihuman » Thu, Jan 08, 2026, 3:57 AM UTC

timeon wrote: post #117

schwarzrules wrote: post #116

I understand all the chatter about LLMs hallucinating, or making assumptions, or not being able to understand or provide the more human/emotional element of health care. But the question I ask myself is: is this better than the alternative? if I wasn't asking ChatGPT, where would I go to get help? The answers I can anticipate are: questionably trustworthy web content; an overconfident friend who may have read questio…

> if I wasn't asking ChatGPT, where would I go to get help? Is this serious question? Can't you call/visit doctor?

Post by zdragnar » Thu, Jan 08, 2026, 4:32 AM UTC

beaugunderson wrote: post #149

zdragnar wrote: post #120

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If you don't need to be physically seen to make a determination, most hospitals and networks operate phone lines where you can speak with a nurse who will triage symptoms and either recommend home remedies or an appointment as needed. I'm not sure if this has switched entirely to video calls or not, but when it became popular it was a great way to avoid overloading urgent care and general physicians with non-urgent h…

As someone who was recently injured and waited three months to see a specialist in Seattle, these lines were not helpful ("yes, you should make an appointment"). The only way I was able to see someone was to write a script that blew up my phone when I got a cancellation window email (the first two I missed even though I responded within 30 seconds).

Post by mlmonkey » Thu, Jan 08, 2026, 5:03 AM UTC

jskrn wrote: post #191

mlmonkey wrote: post #156

My uncle had an issue with his balance and slurred speech. Doctors claimed dementia and sent him home. It kept becoming worse and worse. Then one day I entered the symptoms in ChatGPT (or was it Gemini?) and asked it for the top 3 hypotheses. The first one was related to dementia. The second was something else (I forget the long name). I took all 3 to his primary care doc who had kept ignoring the problem, and asked…

Glad to hear your uncle improved! Would you mind sharing the other two hypotheses and what the diagnosis ultimately was?

Post by NuclearPM » Thu, Jan 08, 2026, 5:08 AM UTC

matthewaveryusa wrote: post #207

NuclearPM wrote: post #148

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Brusqueness? More like insensitivity, lack of empathy, and ignorance. My 12 year old daughter (correctly) diagnosed herself to a food allergy after multiple trips to the ER for stomach pains that resulted in “a few Tylenol/Advil with a glass of water”.

That’s kind of how allergies are discovered though. Doctors will tell you to go on a restrictive food diet and tell you to binary search for it if it doesn’t cause anaphylaxis. Based on my experience with allergies if it’s not anaphylaxis then allergies aren’t considered super important to resolve by doctors. Finally the immune system is complicated and your daughter may have an unusual reaction which may not be IGe…

Post by NuclearPM » Thu, Jan 08, 2026, 5:11 AM UTC

CuriouslyC wrote: post #195

_qua wrote: post #101

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Most doctor advice boil down to drink some water and take a painkiller Forgive my brusqueness here, but this could only be written by someone who has not yet been seriously ill.

Doctors that treat shit that you can treat on the spot and it gets better or it doesn't tend to be really good. Surgeons in particular. Doctors that treat shit that don't have clear causes and that you give medicine to, and sometimes it kinda improves, they tend to be pretty bad. This is both a liability and a connectedness issue.