Synovate surveyed 9,642 people across Brazil, Bulgaria, Canada, Germany, India, Malaysia, Netherlands, Russia, Serbia, Slovakia, Turkey and the United States about all things healthcare. Here's what we found...

Can't go, won't go...

On average, how often do we take our ailments straight to the doctor? For the majority of us around the world, it's between one and three times a year.

However, more than a third of respondents in Russia, Serbia and Turkey reported zero doctor visits for their own health in the past year.

According to Anton Timergaliev, Head of Synovate Healthcare Russia:

"There are two factors driving this in Russia: first, the low quality of the Russian healthcare system, meaning that one must spend at least half a day visiting the physician; secondly, it is normally possible to buy some prescription drugs without a prescription. This could add, for example, antibiotics to the list of 'over the counter' remedies."

At the other end of the spectrum, health conscious (or ailing?) Germans visit the doctor more frequently in a year than anyone - for half the respondents, it was four or more times a year (with 17% popping in more than 10 times!). Economics may play a part, but we also can't forget the 'age pyramid'. Says Synovate Healthcare Germany's Manfred Eberlein:

"The population in Germany is very old compared to that of 'younger' markets such as Turkey, Malaysia and India - as we all know, there are far more health issues in later life. Also, Germany has a very good healthcare system with comprehensive insurance coverage, and doctors are actually incentivised to treat more patients."

Clearly cultural quirks play a role here, but there are broader economic factors also at work. Consumers in emerging markets are far more likely to face issues around funding and access to healthcare than those in more developed markets.

The doctor will see you now

When we actually get there, how do we feel about our interactions with our doctor?

Overall, a third of respondents globally think doctors don't make enough time for them. The nationalities that complained the most were Russians (57% say their doctors don't have sufficient time) and Malaysians (55%), bearing out earlier comments concerning overloaded healthcare systems.

However, if you need a doctor, you might want to consider visiting the Netherlands, where only eight percent of the Dutch think that their doctor is too busy and does not spend enough time with each patient.

Director, Synovate Netherlands, Reinier Heutink, explained: "In general, the Dutch have a very critical attitude towards the healthcare sector. However, the first-line segment (General Practitioners) are generally viewed very positively and the GP population is sufficiently high to allow enough attention on each patient."

How alternative is 'alternative medicine'?

Respondents were also asked how they feel about more 'alternative' treatments such as Traditional Chinese Medicine, herbal remedies, acupuncture, hypnotherapy, meditation and massage.

The vast majority (83%) had not visited any alternative medicine practitioners in the last year.

Indeed, Serbians don't just avoid doctors, they avoid alternative practitioners too - with 92% saying that have not sought care in the past year. By contrast, although the numbers are small, Indians and Canadians were at least twice as likely to have used alternative medicine, with 12% having visited four or more times in the last year. This finding made sense to Monica Gangwani, Head of Synovate Healthcare in India:

"India has a rich tradition of using natural / herbal products for therapeutic purposes. This can be partially explained by the high incidence of self medication and therefore the reliance on alternative medication and home remedies to take care of day-to-day health issues.

"The other important reason is the strong roots that Ayurveda and Ayurvedic healing has had culturally. It's interesting that Ayurveda is increasingly being seen as a part of mainstream means of curing. Alternative medicines have strong cues of 'safe' and 'no side effects' and perceived benefits of long-term goodness as opposed to the quick short-term effects of 'modern' medicines."

Keen on chemical or back to nature?

But that's only half the story. When asked whether they'd ideally opt for natural medicine or drugs, our respondents displayed some polarised views. Overall, the slight majority were inclined to agree that natural is better. The most fervent supporters were our Russian respondents, with two thirds in agreement.

Says Anton Timergaliev: "When we talk about the popularity of natural medicine, it is important to remember that only a hundred years ago a large majority of the Russian population was rural (and plenty of natural remedies were close at hand). Urbanisation, although rapid, is relatively new and many traditions remain strong."

Also big advocates of alternative medicine are the Germans - clearly for different reasons given their easy access to pharmaceutical products. Explained Manfred Eberlein:

"Germany has a long-standing tradition of using homeopathy and natural remedies. Whilst it is widely accepted here that pharmaceuticals are important for treating more serious illnesses, Germans are likely to opt for homeopathy or herbal remedies to treat smaller complaints such as colds, allergies, restlessness / nervousness, sleeping disorders or sporting injuries - they are perceived as less aggressive and to offer more holistic, long-term healing.

"Germans are very careful about their bodies! To compound or perhaps explain this cultural leaning, an increasing number of doctors have an extra degree of specialisation in natural medicines, and so can prescribe pharmaceuticals and advise on alternative approaches."

When asked about scepticism towards non-pharmaceutical approaches, the US was essentially equally divided on this issue, as were Brazil, Bulgaria, and Canada.

So what approaches are the most popular? Herbal remedies and massage were the most likely to have been tried in all markets, at 24% and 21% respectively. This was excepting India, where Traditional Chinese Medicine at 19% was the leading non-pharmaceutical approach.

Doctor's orders

It's a fact: the proliferation of new information sources has given rise to an upsurge in 'patient power'. In some markets, the doctor no longer has the last, or even first, word in healthcare decision-making. Despite this, most markets have some way to go before usurping the doctor's traditional position of authority.

When asked how they perceive their doctor, most markets view them as 'an informed advisor whose opinion I respect'. The more traditional view of the doctor as the unquestioned authority figure was the norm only in Bulgaria (59%), Serbia and Turkey (both 37%).

Notable exceptions in terms of their perspective were the independent Canadians, with 59% believing that the doctor is 'just one of several sources who influence my healthcare decisions.' Interestingly, no Canadian respondents agreed with the statement that the doctor is 'a person whose directions I follow without question.' Head of Synovate Healthcare in Canada, Otto Akkerman, explained:

"This result reflects the increasing role other healthcare providers play in how Canadians manage their health and select treatment options. Many Canadians rely on their pharmacist to explain physician recommendations. As the physician shortage continues and healthcare legislation in several provinces give pharmacists increased authority to provide healthcare consultation and write prescriptions, we can expect this number to increase."

The survey also asked whether patients often arrive at their doctor's practice already prepared with their own diagnosis. Overall, the majority of respondents still rely on their doctor for this - with exceptions in India, Malaysia and Slovakia.

In Bulgaria and the Netherlands more than 70% of respondents disagreed with the statement that they generally come to the doctor already with a diagnosis.

Just ask 'Dr Google'

So if doctors are losing ground, just who (or what) is filling the healthcare information gap?

At least one quarter of our respondents relied on primary sources of advice other than doctors. To compound this, about half agreed that they would only take the medication prescribed by their doctor if their other research backed it up! Most passionate about this were the Malaysians at 82%.

After doctors, friends and family were most likely to be the primary source of health information. On average, eight percent of respondents globally turned to family and friends as their main source - this was most pronounced in Malaysia (18%), Brazil (16%) and Russia (14%). In fact, in most of the nations surveyed, respondents were more likely to ask friends and family about their health than they were to ask a pharmacist or nurse!

Another main influencer is the internet. On average, five percent of respondents used it as their primary source, driven by Slovaks (16%), the Dutch (15%) and the Americans (10%). Commented Reinier Heutink:

"Despite the Dutch respect for GPs, there are discussions currently taking place in the Netherlands in which GPs state their fear of 'Doctor Google' - that is, patients using Google as their main diagnostic tool. People do want to be prepared and informed and be sparring partners with their GPs."

However, only 18% of all respondents agreed that they see their doctor less because they can often find out what they need to know on the internet. Although about a third of respondents in Slovakia (36%) and Russia (30%) and a quarter in the US and Malaysia agreed with this statement, almost no one did in India and Bulgaria.

For Serbians, Bulgarians, Brazilians, Germans, Indians and Turks, the pharmacist ruled over the internet. Those least likely to cite the pharmacist as a primary source of information were Americans and Malaysians.

Surprisingly, nurses were cited infrequently, with less than one percent of respondents saying they rely on the nurse as a primary source of information. US respondents were more than twice as likely, on average, to cite nurses as their primary source but it was still a small number.

Concluded Michael Spedding, CEO of Synovate Healthcare: "These findings are consistent with our experience; as knowledge is accessed through other channels and the population becomes more informed, we may well see the influence of the doctor decline further."