Google can diagnose depression

Looking up “depression“ on Google will now allow users in the US to check whether they are clinically depressed, thanks to a new self-assessment feature added to the popular search engine. The feature will provide an option to take a clinically validated questionnaire called PHQ-9 when a person Googles the word “depression“.They will also see a box atop the results on mobile phones with information on what depression is, its symptoms, and possible treatments. The self-assessment is private and meant to help encourage patients to seek medical help. The new feature “is not meant to subvert a medical evaluation. It is meant to steer you to one if you appear depressed“, Google spokesperson Susan Cadrecha told `The Verge’. Depression affects more than 300 million people worldwide, according to WHO.