What patients search
About 1 in 10 Australian adults asked ChatGPT a health question in the six months to June 2024. We read 59 clinic websites to see whether they answer what patients ask next.
The numbers
OpenAI says more than 300 million people a week ask ChatGPT about health, up from 230 million in January 2026. A US poll found 1 in 3 adults used an AI chatbot for health information in the past year.
What they ask
In the Australian survey, 37% asked what their symptoms mean and 12% whether to see a doctor. In the US poll, 41% looked things up before deciding whether to see a provider, and 1 in 5 cited cost or access.
The five a clinic can answer
Not the clinical questions. The practical ones a clinic already knows the answers to. We checked 59 sites, 275 pages, for a sentence answering each.
What we found
45 of 59 mention Medicare or funds. 32 give a fee. 19 say whether a referral is needed. 15 describe the first visit. 15 say how soon you can be seen. 10 sites answered none.
By clinic type
Psychology sites answered 3 of 5 on average, because Medicare rebates force them to explain referrals and fees. Cosmetic sites averaged 0.6, and 6 of 10 answered nothing.
The catch
Seven GP clinics kept their fees in table cells with no sentence around them. A person can read that. A system that quotes text cannot. Write the sentence: a standard consultation is 50 minutes and costs this much.
This week
The fee in dollars. Whether a referral is needed. What the first visit involves. How soon new patients are usually seen. What Medicare or a fund covers, and for whom. Keep every one factual and qualified.
Tap for the full measurement and the rewrite table