Millenson in Forbes: How Mayo's "Dr. Google" Deal Disrupts Medicine

In his latest column in Forbes, health care quality consultant Michael Millenson examines the implications of Google joining with the Mayo Clinic to provide consumers with medical information, which he says quietly signals a powerful disruption for all of medicine.

Now when people search their health questions on Google they will get relevant medical facts up front that have been reviewed by teams of doctors including expert clinicians at Mayo Clinic for quality and accuracy.

Millenson writes:

Recommending a Google search “as the first stop for those needing health information,” in the words of a Mayo physician executive, represents a true paradigm change.

But there’s much more going on here than search. From the Fitbit to medicine’s front lines, information technology is forcing a new doctor-patient relationship with new rules for new roles.

If information is power, digitized information is distributed power. While “patient-centered care” has been directed by professionals towards patients, collaborative health – what some call “participatory medicine” or “person-centric care” ­– shifts the perspective from the patient outwards.

Genuine collaborative health will require incorporating information technology into relationships that harmonize both those views