Deciphering online health information exposure: crafting summaries from multimedia data collection - patients navigate a multitude of information resources throughout their health journeys

The internet is one of the most frequently cited sources of information, along with guidance from healthcare providers. For some subset of patient populations, such as those considering microsurgical breast reconstruction, the internet is the most cited source of information, even more than their healthcare team. Patients' online health information-seeking behaviors extend beyond search engines. Many gravitate towards online platforms, such as social media websites and discussion boards, for health information and advice. These platforms offer patients information in multiple modalities (e.g., text, image, video) that help them visualize outcomes of their own care and prepare for physical changes resulting from treatments they may seek. Currently, there is no formal "measurement" of online health information exposure in a physical exam or a laboratory setting. Assessing a patient's online health information exposure necessitates candid conversations. Despite providers expressing being open to discussing online health information with patients, most patients report never or rarely disclosing the health information they find online with their providers. A critical barrier to incorporating a patient's online health information exposure into conversations with their healthcare providers is the challenge of efficiently summarizing a patient's online activities. Our goal is to develop algorithms that will enable patients' online health information exposure to be summarized into a multimedia synopsis. In the future, a concise multimedia synopsis of a patient's online health information exposure could be used in medical consultations to support patient-provider communication.