The visitor record, in one month, for Thuisarts.nl still stands at 7.4 million and dates from March 2020. That was the moment when the COVID-19 pandemic also broke out in the Netherlands. However, Corona has ensured that the number of people who consult Thuisarts.nl has continued to grow explosively since then, after a stagnation in the first half of 2021. This was already apparent at the beginning of July from research into the use of the site by Nivel in collaboration with the Dutch College of General Practitioners (NHG), UMC Groningen, Radboud UMC and Maastricht UMC+.
Corona still top topic
In the first half of 2022, the top topic for which visitors consulted Thuisarts.nl was still corona, followed by stomach complaints, chicken pox, cystitis and sore throat. The two most frequently consulted situations were also COVID-19 related; ‘I have corona and want to prevent others from getting it’ and ‘I have Corona’, the NHG reports in an article.
This also ensures that Thuisarts.nl is increasingly expanded with information and advice on corona-related topics, such as long-term corona complaints. In addition, the number of choice cards, on which the characteristics of different treatment methods can be consulted at a glance, has also grown. These are being developed by the NHG together with medical specialists and patient organisations. There are now about 50.
In the two pandemic years (2020-2021), topics related to (the consequences of) infectious diseases, such as impetigo, shingles, diarrhea and chickenpox, were searched less often. Researchers know this, among other things, from the lockdowns and contact-limiting measures, which have reduced the spread of these infectious diseases.
Thuisarts.nl is a public website with information about disorders and health complaints. The site also provides advice on what can be done about these complaints and information about a healthy lifestyle. The information is compiled by doctors and patients, based on scientific guidelines from general practitioners, medical specialists and mental health professionals.