--- title: "Checking health information online and in AI answers: NHS…" description: "A practical UK guide to checking health claims, reading AI summaries carefully and taking useful questions to your healthcare team." url: https://healthanswers.co.uk/guides/checking-online-health-information/ robots: noindex --- # Checking health information online and in AI answers: NHS… Practical health guides A practical UK guide to checking health claims, reading AI summaries carefully and taking useful questions to your healthcare team. Written by HealthAnswers Practical editorial guide · Medical review not recorded. Drafted and source-checked with AI assistance. [What this means](https://healthanswers.co.uk/about/how-we-review/#editorial-guides) Sources checked 8 September 2026 ## Quick answer How can I check whether online health information is reliable? Check who produced a health claim, when it was checked and whether its sources support it. Open the original source behind an AI answer and look for UK guidance. If the information could change your care, discuss it with your healthcare professional before acting on it. ## Who is this page for? People preparing for healthcare conversations or checking public health information. Service eligibility and local arrangements vary. ## Who should skip this page? Skip this page if you need a diagnosis, a prescription, or emergency care. It cannot replace a GP, pharmacist, NHS 111 or 999. If you are in immediate danger, call 999; for urgent advice that is not life-threatening, call 111 in England, Scotland or Wales, or use your GP out-of-hours service in Northern Ireland. On this page 5 sections ## Key points - An AI answer is a starting point for questions, not a personal medical assessment. - A source-check date is different from a clinical review by a health professional. - Save the claim and the original source so you can discuss them together. ## Start with the claim you want to check Turn a long post, video or search answer into one question. For example: “This page says everyone should have this test. Does that include someone in my situation?” This gives you something specific to investigate or take to an appointment. Notice whether you are reading general information, an advertisement or a personal story. A person’s experience can help you understand how something felt for them, but it cannot tell you what will happen to you. ## Look behind the page The [Patient Information Forum’s public checklist](https://piftick.org.uk/guide/finding-trusted-health-information/) suggests checking the producer, dates, sources and purpose of health information. Put those checks into practice: - Open the organisation’s About page and the author’s or reviewer’s details. - Find the publication and review dates. A recent date alone does not establish accuracy. - Follow a reference. Check that it actually discusses the claim you are reading. - Notice commercial interests and whether benefits are presented alongside harms and uncertainty. An attractive design or a medical-sounding name is not a substitute for these checks. A quality mark can give information about a publisher’s process; check what the mark means with the organisation that awards it. ## Check the original source behind an AI answer [Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust warns that AI search summaries can get health information wrong](https://www.guysandstthomas.nhs.uk/about-us/safe-and-reliable-health-information). A fluent answer can still omit an important exception. Open the linked page and read the surrounding section. Check whether it concerns adults or children, the same condition or medicine, and the country where you receive care. If no usable source is supplied, keep the claim as a question to verify. For example, an answer about “self-referral” may describe an NHS service in England. That does not establish the access route in Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland. Our [Talking Therapies appointment guide](https://healthanswers.co.uk/guides/first-nhs-talking-therapies-appointment/) identifies its England scope at the start. ## Take a short note to your appointment Copy this outline onto paper or into your own notes. You do not need to enter personal health details on HealthAnswers. - The claim: what the page or answer says. - Where I found it: page title, link and date you read it. - Why it matters to me: the decision or worry it raises. - My question: what you want your clinician or pharmacist to explain. The [NHS appointment guide](https://www.nhs.uk/nhs-services/gps/what-to-ask-your-doctor/) recommends preparing questions and asking for explanations when something is unclear. Our [printable GP questions](https://healthanswers.co.uk/health-tools/questions-for-your-gp/) can help you organise that conversation. ## If you find a problem on this site Use our [corrections page](https://healthanswers.co.uk/corrections/) to report the affected URL and the claim you think needs checking. Read the byline: this is an AI-assisted practical guide, with public sources checked on the date shown. It has not had a recorded medical review. ## Common questions Does being first in search results mean a health page is reliable? Search position alone does not tell you who checked a claim or whether it applies to you. Look at the organisation, sources and review information on the page itself. What if an AI answer contradicts my clinician? Bring the answer and its source to your clinician or pharmacist and ask them to explain the difference. Do not change prescribed treatment based on an AI answer alone. Does HealthAnswers have the PIF TICK? We do not claim PIF TICK certification. We link to its public guidance to help readers check health information, and show the review status of each HealthAnswers guide separately. ## Sources - [PIF TICK — finding trusted health information](https://piftick.org.uk/guide/finding-trusted-health-information/) - [Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust — safe and reliable health information](https://www.guysandstthomas.nhs.uk/about-us/safe-and-reliable-health-information) - [NHS — what to ask your doctor or other healthcare professional](https://www.nhs.uk/nhs-services/gps/what-to-ask-your-doctor/)