Blog by Dr Pete Smith OBE, Self-Care Forum President
Public interest in health, wellbeing, and self-care has expanded dramatically in recent years. Online references to self-care topics have surged—from roughly 300 million in 2017 to over 6 billion by 2023—reflecting a growing willingness among individuals to invest time, effort, and resources in improving their health and ‘wellness’. This widespread engagement should create ideal conditions for delivering the ambitions of the NHS 10-Year Health Plan, particularly its emphasis on prevention.
Despite this, many healthcare professionals remain cautious about the rise of self-care.
Different perspectives
Recent research conducted by the Self-Care Forum[i][ii]in collaboration with Imperial College London’s Self-Care Academic Research Unit (SCARU) surveyed more than 3,000 UK adults, including clinicians. The findings indicate that self-care is both widely recognised and actively practiced by the public. Individuals increasingly take responsibility for managing their own health: 88% report handling common symptoms themselves, while only a very small minority (2%) consult a GP. Similarly, the use of over-the-counter treatments for common symptoms has more than doubled (from 22% to 46%) over the past decade.
However, the same study highlights a contrasting professional viewpoint. Around two-thirds of healthcare professionals identified lack of public engagement, limited understanding, and reluctance to take responsibility as the main obstacles to effective self-care.
If preventative healthcare is to become a reality, this disconnect must be addressed. Failure to do so risks wasting the momentum generated by an engaged public—and may leave individuals more vulnerable to unreliable information online.
Understanding the roots of the gap
Different interpretations of self-care
A key issue lies in how self-care is defined. Members of the public typically view it in broad terms, encompassing lifestyle choices, wellbeing, and everyday health decisions, as illustrated in the Self-Care Forum’s Self-Care Continuum[iii]. By contrast, many professionals adopt a narrower, clinical definition that centres on “supported self-care,” where patients act under guidance to manage or prevent specific conditions.
In practice, self-care spans a continuum—from daily behaviours that promote wellbeing, to prevention strategies, to managing both acute and chronic conditions. When professional discourse focuses mainly on supported approaches, it can overshadow the importance of independent self-management. Ideally, healthcare advice should complement and reinforce an individuals’ own actions, rather than replace them.
Concerns about information quality and quantity
Another factor contributing to scepticism is the vast and variable quality of health information available online. While the sheer volume of content highlights strong public interest, it also raises valid concerns about accuracy and reliability.
Both patients and clinicians have expressed unease about this. Patients may struggle to judge credibility, while professionals worry about misinformation, longer consultations, and challenges to their expertise. The so-called “heartbeat moment”—when clinicians are presented with unfamiliar online information during an appointment—illustrates these tensions clearly[iv][v].
Although these concerns are justified, disengaging from the issue is unlikely to be effective.
Bridging the divide
Addressing the gap requires meeting people where they are—recognising their existing engagement and supporting it with clear, trustworthy guidance. This includes helping individuals understand what constitutes normal symptoms, when professional input is needed, and where to find reliable advice, while also acknowledging that many situations can be managed independently.
Many healthcare professionals are already adopting more constructive approaches, including:
- Recognising the full scope of self-care
Embracing a broader understanding that includes wellbeing, lifestyle, and prevention, not just clinical management. - Working in partnership with informed patients
Viewing patients’ online research as a starting point for discussion rather than a challenge, and using it to build shared understanding. - Being open about uncertainty
Acknowledging limits to one’s own knowledge and valuing patients’ efforts to engage with their health. - Signposting trustworthy resources
Directing patients to credible UK sources such as NHS.uk, Patient.info, and organisations accredited with quality marks like the PIF TICK[vi]. - Using shared reference materials
Providing accessible information, such as Self-Care Forum fact sheets[vii], that align professional advice with public understanding. - Improving resilience to misinformation
Encouraging use of tools and guidance designed to help individuals identify and avoid unreliable health information such as the NHS’s Misinformation UnMASKED[viii].
Importantly, this is not solely the role of GPs; the wider primary care team, including social prescribers, can play a key role in guiding people to appropriate resources.
Conclusion
There is clear evidence of a mismatch between how self-care is perceived by the public and by healthcare professionals. This divide has important implications for the success of prevention-focused healthcare strategies.
Yet the foundations for closing this gap are already in place. By adapting professional attitudes and building on public enthusiasm, it is possible to create a more aligned, collaborative approach to self-care—one that delivers substantial benefits without requiring major new resources.
References
[i] Smith P, Altalib S, Al Ammouri M, et al
What is the interplay between self-care confidence, professional support and health literacy among UK adults? A cross-sectional online survey study
BMJ Open 2026;16:e110378. doi: 10.1136/bmjopen-2025-110378
[ii] El-Osta A, Altalib S, Al Ammouri M, Smith P Understanding Demographic Disparities and Personal Barriers to Self-Care in the UK: Findings from the Living Self-Care Survey Study
medRxiv 2025.06.01.25328757; doi: https://doi.org/10.1101/2025.06.01.25328757
[iii] What is self-care and why is it good for people and the NHS? – Self-Care Forum
[iv] Ahluwalia S, Murray E, Stevenson F, Kerr C, Burns J. ‘A heartbeat moment’: qualitative study of GP views of patients bringing health information from the internet to a consultation. Br J Gen Pract. 2010 Feb;60(571):88-94. doi: 10.3399/bjgp10X483120. PMID: 20132702; PMCID: PMC2814261.
[v] The Medical and Dental Defence Union of Scotland. 2015. Dealing with self-diagnosing patients | MDDUS
[vi] PIF TICK Certification | Patient Information Forum
[vii] Fact Sheets – Self-Care Forum
