title: Online health anxiety and consultation satisfaction: A quantitative exploratory study on their relations.
abstract: The present study explores how seeking online information may affect satisfaction with the doctor consultation and what role health anxiety plays in this context.
  
  
  
  A survey was conducted asking patients in doctors' offices about their online seeking for health information and measuring health anxiety prior to the consultation, and their satisfaction with the consultation afterwards (N= 239).
  
  
  
  Results showed that health anxiety is positively related to seeking online health information and that health anxious people are less satisfied with the doctor consultation. Furthermore, people searching more extensively appreciated the duration of their physician's consultation less, but only if they were relatively health anxious.
  
  
  
  The internet has significantly changed how patients can prepare themselves prior to the doctor consultation. This may have a negative effect on the satisfaction with the consultation, especially for people that are health anxious.
  
  
  
  Doctors should be aware that online health information seeking affects the satisfaction with the consultation, especially for health anxious individuals.
authors.affiliation: Department of Communication Science, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, The Netherlands. Electronic address: m.a.tanis@vu.nl.
authors.forename: Martin
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Tanis
authors.affiliation: Department of Communication Science, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: Tilo
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Hartmann
authors.affiliation: Department of Communication Science, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: Fam
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Te Poel
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001007:Anxiety / Q000523:psychology*; D001294:Attitude to Health; D005260:Female; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D006801:Humans; D057226:Information Seeking Behavior; D020407:Internet; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D017060:Patient Satisfaction; D010817:Physician-Patient Relations; D012017:Referral and Consultation; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires
keywords: Consultation satisfaction; Health anxiety; Online health information