Health

At the beginning of 2011 I had the chance to spend five weeks in South Korea. It was a fantastic experience.

Towards the end of my trip I found myself on the slopes of ‘Phoenix Park’, one of Korea’s leading ski resorts, with a couple of friends and a snowboard. Which was great… up until the point where I broke my collarbone.

Just so it’s clear. I can’t speak Korean, and pretty much all the staff in the ski medical center couldn’t speak English. Which posed a bit of a problem.

Somewhere in the midst of pointing at my shoulder and trying to indicate ‘broken’ with my remaining good hand I had a thought.

I pulled out my iPhone and typed into Google – “broken collarbone”.

I soon figured out that my injury was a ‘broken clavicle’ and that the only real treatment was a sling and rest. The kind gentleman in the medical centre provided the sling, and I was on my way back to Seoul.

Lewis (2006) discusses the information revolution in regards to Medical science. Noting both the practical benefits as well as the professional concerns regarding authenticity.

Personally, I think people have the ability to recognise when a health problem is so severe a doctor should be seen; and in extreme situations it’s much better to be able to research for yourself then just leave the problem untouched.

References:

Cluet, J. 2005. Broken Collarbone. Last Modified November 25, 2005. http://orthopedics.about.com/cs/brokenbones/a/collarbone.htm

Eclansky. 2009. "Skiing @ Phoenix Park outside Seoul." Youtube Video, posted January 17. Accessed April 10, 2011. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Enra2m-nhoE&feature=related

Lewis, T. 2006. Seeking Health Information on the Internet: Lifestyle Choice or Bad Attack of Cyberchondria. In Media, Culture and Society. 28: 521