| How America's Patient Base Is Changing: | | | | or get a second opinion, compared with 48% of those |
| The Pew Internet & American Life Project | | | | who had not had a recent diagnosis or health crisis." |
| recently reported in "The Engaged E-patient | | | | How Patients Find Medical Practitioners |
| Population" that between 75% and 80% of internet | | | | If you are a doctor, how does your next patient find |
| users have looked online for health information. Harris | | | | you? It is clear to us that a substantial patient base is |
| Interactive's study yielded similar results: 81% of internet | | | | consistently seeking medical care through internet |
| users, 66% of all adults, have sought health information | | | | searches. The keywords and search patterns that we |
| online. | | | | study consistently show dozens of searches per day |
| Pew attributes this rise in health-related searches to | | | | for medical specialties in major markets, and even in |
| two factors: the adoption of broadband internet | | | | smaller markets the search patterns are acceptably |
| connections, and "personal motivation." | | | | robust. The single phrase "Houston Plastic Surgery" is |
| The report offers detailed insight into the manner and | | | | searched 93 times daily-and that is without variants |
| depth of patient's usage: | | | | such as "surgeons" or "implants". |
| "in health care, people who feel they have a lot at | | | | Even a smaller market like Yuma, AZ, garners 14 |
| stake are more likely to engage intensely with online | | | | searches a day for "cardiologist Yuma az". Your |
| resources. Internet users living with a disability or | | | | keyword study, like the one pictured just above, is |
| chronic disease are more likely than other internet | | | | included in your SEO/Web Design contract. In fact, |
| users to be wide-ranging online health researchers and | | | | your keyword study is the foundation of what we do: |
| to report significant impacts from those searches. For | | | | it is the search queries, their number and relevance, |
| example, 75% of e-patients with a chronic condition | | | | that guide us in our development of your website. |
| say their last health search affected a decision about | | | | Conclusion: The Lesson |
| how to treat an illness or condition," and | | | | As an advertising medium, search engine optimization |
| "Newly diagnosed e-patients and those who have | | | | is a valuable tool to bring in new patients. An effective |
| experienced a health crisis in the past year are also | | | | medical website design with medical SEO functionality |
| particularly tuned in: 59% say the information they | | | | can increase inbound patient inquiries. If you'd like to |
| found online led them to ask a doctor new questions | | | | learn more, you can visit Medical Website Design Pros. |