Abstract
INTRODUCTION: YouTube is commonly used as an easily accessible online resource for patients seeking to learn about medical procedures, their safety, and their risks. Abortion is a common yet polarizing medical procedure. There is no current research that evaluates the accuracy of instructional videos available to patients. Given the reliance of information gathered on the internet to inform medical decision making, this study was designed to assess whether any given video can deliver accurate information about this topic in an unbiased manner. METHODS: Surgical methods of abortion were used as a search query into YouTube. The videos were screened with strict exclusion criteria. The percent accuracy of each video was calculated as compared to the Surgical Curriculum in Obstetrics and Gynecology (SCOG) checklist for the corresponding procedure. RESULTS: Thirty-two videos were analyzed and categorized into three “video slant” groups: neutral (n=23), anti-choice (n=4), and pro-choice (n=5). Using the SCOG checklist, neutral videos had the highest average accuracy percentage of 45.9%, anti-choice videos 24.6%, and pro-choice 18.5%. CONCLUSION: Using the SCOG checklist, the accuracy of instructional videos were inconsistent across the three identified “video slants.” Patients should consider this when accessing YouTube videos for information regarding abortion procedures.
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