How great is the internet? We’ve got more information at our fingertips than ever before, and it’s a great way to kill some time. It’s never been easier to find out just how many films Leo’s done, who wore what at the Grammys or just how much that red telephone box is going for on eBay.

Yep, the internet’s a pretty great place to get lost in and you can burn a few hours by just following your nose from one search to another.

But there’s a lot of things that it’s not so great for, like finding out just how sick you are.

Whether it’s a dose of Man Flu, a really weird lump or something truly bizarre, we’ve all put our strange symptoms into a search engine from time to time.

This new behaviour’s even got a name, and it’s called Cyberchondria.

There’s a lot of exotic diseases out there, and it’s pretty fun to check them out. But when you put forward even the most common of symptoms into a search engine, like a headache and a runny nose, you can get some alarming suggestions.

And most of us have probably been scared senseless by some of the ‘diagnoses’ we get staring back at us.

But here’s the thing. You can’t really trust Dr Web. The info you’re getting could be coming from anywhere, and it can cause you a lot of unnecessary anxiety (which might even lead you to avoid seeing a doctor for fear of the worst).

And even if you do get some sort of medically accurate advice, how can you get any better without actually seeing a doctor? The only way to really know what you should do next, is to speak to a qualified medical professional.

It’s just a lot easier to just do some quick fact finding on the sofa with your phone in one hand and a cuppa in the other.

With demand for online diagnosis on the up, enter babylon. The easy way to get advice you can trust from medical professionals on your phone or laptop, just as easily as using a search engine. It’s your own, complete virtual health service, in your pocket.

With babylon you can have the best of both worlds by asking as many medical questions as you can think of and get fast, reliable advice in a flash, or text one of the babylon medical doctors for a response in minutes — no appointment required, and you still don’t need to leave the house.

And if it turns out that there is something to worry about, you can book a video consultation with a registered doctor in-app for the same day. With easy access to specialists and therapists, you can find a trusted source of medical advice to put your fears at rest.

For just £5 a month, you can access unlimited mobile appointments on the babylon app. Given the average waiting time for a GP appointment has leapt from 10 days in 2015 to a projected 17 in 2017, why wait so long when you could get a diagnosis in minutes?

Should you require further assistance, the GMC registered doctors on babylon can send you for referrals or diagnostic tests. They’ll even send prescriptions to your nearest pharmacy or direct to your door, if you want to stay under the duvet.

As 65% of 16–24 year olds would trust a health website or app as their primary source of healthy living information, babylon is that dependable source linking health professionals and AI technology together — giving you the assurance and advice you long for in a quick, reliable way.

As babylon founder Dr. Ali Parsa points out: “Sending a rocket to Mars is difficult. We just want to put GPs on an app.”

So, don’t ask the internet. Ask a real doctor on babylon.

Sources:

- Pulse Today: Average Waiting Time for a GP Appointment Increases 30% in a Year

- Google Official Blog: A Remedy for your Health-Related Questions: Health Info in the Knowledge Graph

- Express: Apps are More Trusted by Young People for Medical Advice

- Popsci: Your Online Diagnosis is Probably Wrong

The new babylon: designed with you in mind

Our single purpose is to put an accessible and affordable health service into the hands of every person on earth. And now that the new version of babylon has just launched around the world, we’re closer than ever to achieving it.

It’s also a big step towards making your healthcare experience even better.

We know you’re very busy people, and that your health and wellbeing can be hard to fit into everyday life. So we’ve designed babylon to fit even more seamlessly into your life with our new feature, babylon chat.

And it starts with one question, ‘How can I help you?’

So, how can we help you?

We know that people could need medical advice at any moment, wherever they are. We’ve created babylon chat so everyone can see a GP via video conference, ask medical questions and get advice on what to do next no matter where they are, day or night.

Simply designed

Simplicity is at the heart of all of our favourite products, so we’ve worked hard to make sure babylon chat is simplicity itself. We’ve designed it to be just like using your favourite IM app, making it really easy for you to ask medical questions.

Easy to talk to

When you use the chat feature babylon will talk back to you using small bits of info at a time, always moving the conversation forward in a meaningful way. So you’ll get the advice you need quickly, through a really natural conversation.

Human after all

Until now, our conversations with apps have been a bit one way and they use really robotic language like ‘login’ and ‘download’.

At babylon we know that people need the human touch when it comes to their health. That’s why babylon chat let’s you express whatever you’re feeling, the way you want to and still understands, giving you the sound medical advice you need in a very human way.

How sick am I?

It’s not always easy to know if you need to see your GP or not, and it’s tough doing battle with long waits, grumpy receptionists and packed waiting rooms, only to discover you just need a bit of R&R and a paracetamol.

babylon chat will ask you questions and, based on your responses, give you advice on what you need to do next — which may mean you just need to rest up for a bit.

We’ve all used Dr Google to find out what’s wrong, but now there’s a safer, more secure way to get reliable medical advice. And because babylon’s designed by doctors, it’s clinically validated and constantly monitored for highly accurate results.

Not quite the answer you wanted? Just rephrase your question and ask babylon again. It’s free, remember so you can ask us as many questions as you like. We never get bored with medical questions :)

Just Ask

Sometimes people prefer the human touch, so now you can just send the query to our GPs.

You’ll get a response within 2 hours from a fully qualified, fully human doctor, giving you the quick advice you need without the hassle of an appointment, 7 days a week.

And if you do need to see a GP, you’re always just one click away from an appointment wherever you are.

Knowledge at your fingertips

As well as these new features, you’ll always have all the health and medical info you could possibly need at your fingertips, wherever you go.

So if you want to know more about the flu, how measles starts or want to ask that slightly embarrassing question you’ve never dared ask another soul, just ask babylon and we’ll send you a leaflet with the info you need in seconds.

Now that everyone who downloads babylon has free 24/7 medical advice in their pocket and a GP appointment a few clicks away, you can see why we’re so excited.

#askbabylon

Ask babylon was originally published in Babylon Engineering on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.