Digital diagnosis: Consultations get tech-savvy to save patient...

There are various websites you can go to for an online consultation (http://onlineconsultation.com ) if your own doctor doesn't offer this service. I have found services like this very helpful, particularly because you can have multiple doctors respond with their recommendations.

I like this idea a lot in theory, but in practice steps will be needed to prevent abuse of the system.

In light of the following excerpt from the article, why not just reduce everything to a computer program that analyzes patient answers to form questions and makes a diagnosis?

To initiate an e-consult about medical issues, patients answer a series of questions about their illness and medical history. The system often asks different questions depending on the patient's answers, as a doctor would. The doctor gets notified of the inquiry and posts an answer online for the patient to look up.

"When they fill out the form, all the questions I would have asked [in person] are already answered," Whelihan said. "I can actually make a pretty good diagnosis."