New Zealand Medical Association president Stephen Child said searching for information online was "extremely unusual" and not a trend among New Zealand medical professionals. He doubted the figure would be as high as 16 per cent, suggesting it was more likely to be 1 to 2 per cent.
"A doctor patient relationship is based on trust. Trust is based on honest communication."
Child said patients needed to be honest with their doctors and doctors needed to be upfront in their dealings with patients.
"You would never ever think of checking up on a patient. If they say they had stopped smoking, you would have to believe them," he said.
"I think it's inappropriate for doctors to ever do that."
Child said he could not think of an ethical reason for Googling patients that would not be part of honest communication between patient and doctor.
He said such actions were more likely to undermine future communication, than do good.
"The only time that should ever be breached is if it's going to save the patient or save others," he said.
Association of Salaried Medical Specialists executive director Ian Powell said it was not something he had ever come across but agreed it would generally be wise for doctors to avoid looking up patients online.
In the Medical Council of New Zealand's statement on the use of the internet and electronic communication, published in December 2016, doctors were advised to exercise restraint in seeking information about patients.
"Patients have expectations of privacy and may choose not to disclose certain information to you in a clinical setting, even when that information is openly accessible online. If you consider that it is medically necessary to view patients' websites or online profiles, seek their permission before accessing those sites. You should also confirm the accuracy and relevance of online information with the patient before using it to inform your clinical decision-making or entering it into the patient record," the statement said.
