TeenHealthFX - Answers - Site Seems Slow To Answer

The Inner Workings Of TeenHealthFX / Question
Published: January 23, 2003

Dear TeenHealthFX,

Hi, I've posted some questions a few months ago and as far as i know, they havent been answered, thats fine, i understand that its hard to give complete information quickly.i have read a bunch of questions where the people, if being truthful, are in eminent danger of dying. i just read one about somebody who had "cut their wrists 3 min ago" if the wound is serious enough, they could go into shock in a few minutes and die. although, something like this is obviously not answerable as something like an instant message, but there are other questions dealing with suicide and doing drugs and other stuff where a rather prompt answer is required. not to the extent of instant, but definatly timely. im just saying that this site is a good "resource" but i think its kind of ineffective. as im writting this, the issue of legal liability comes into mind, does this play a role in the timelyness of answers? i still have a few questions that remain unanswered, and i dont think its to the importance of bothering a teacher or someone. i really dont know why i wrote this, maybe to just explain my impression of the site, or maybe you can take suggestions from it. i think if something is obviously wrong with you, you should call 911 or go to a doctor or hospital. this seems to be the answers to all of your questions. i just think the "unimportant" but intellegent questions are getting pushed aside, while you answer questions where the idividual is danger of hurting or dying. by the time you answer the question, they would probably be hurt or dead. thanks

Signed: Site Seems Slow To Answer

Dear Site Seems Slow To Answer,

TeenHealthFX thanks you for taking the time to look at our site and give us feedback. We take great pride here in making sure that we are serving the adolescents who visit our site as best we can and we value all of the feedback we receive.

As you have observed, the nature of a good deal of our questions can be urgent and we want to address these situations as quickly as is humanly possible so that we may help to prevent a dangerous situation from escalating. On the surface, surely it may be obvious that dialing 911 or another emergency service would be the thing to do in a crisis situation, but for someone in the midst of a crisis themselves, sometimes a little direction can go a long way.

TeenHealthFX also has many answers on the site that are not urgent in nature. We read every question we receive, but due to the volume of questions, we cannot possibly answer all of them. We do take all of our questions here seriously and welcome discussions about a wide range of health related issues that our users are interested in. We constantly strive to answer as many questions as possible.

You are correct that many of our answers ask the reader to seek out professional help or talk to a trusted adult. That is because it is impossible to diagnose problems over the Internet. To fully appreciate someone's issues, you need to get as many details as possible and that can be done best in person. Our site is designed to empower the reader to seek out help when appropriate, whether it is with a medical professional, therapist or an adult that they trust. Life is lived in person, not through the web.

Again, we appreciate your concerns. If you have not already, you may want to browse through the site and see if there are already answers posted to questions like those you are waiting for. There is a vast amount of information on the site and we hope that you may be able to find some of it useful to you.

Signed: TeenHealthFX