Typical emojis have been around since 1995 and are familiar to anyone on social media. They let people express emotion in digital communication. Today, there are countless emojis, from a laughing face to a rocket ship. For a long time, few people thought to use them for anything beyond entertainment.
Emojis: A Bridge for Doctor-Patient Communication
U.S. researcher Kendrick Davis has been developing an emoji-based assessment system for the past two years. He believes that a set of icons and smileys can be a valuable tool for patients who cannot speak. Using this emoji system, patients with conditions that hinder communication could more clearly convey their symptoms and feelings to doctors.
Davis says emojis have broad appeal across education levels, languages, and ages. “Emojis are a true bridge for communicating with people who cannot speak,” he says.
Davis thinks his assessment system could help clinicians communicate with patients who have had strokes or who are on ventilators. With a specialized emoji scale, nonverbal patients could indicate their mood, how long their pain lasts, the intensity of that pain, and other symptoms.
The Daily Mail reports that Davis notes emojis are used across ages. The one obvious exception is people with visual impairments, for whom emojis may not be suitable for expressing emotions.
He argues that medical societies should agree on a common set of symbols with clear meanings. That way, a universal emoji-based language could be developed to improve communication between patients and healthcare providers.
Emojis in Medicine: Serious Help, Not a Gimmick
Dr. Shuhan He shares those views. As early as 2021, he recognized that emojis could add a new layer of communication between clinicians and patients with speech difficulties. He thinks each medical specialty should develop its own emoji set for interacting with nonverbal patients.
Dr. He also says emojis could be especially useful for children who struggle with speech or who speak a different language than their clinician.
Currently, there are about 50 emojis related to medicine. The most recognizable include anatomical images of the heart and lungs, a tooth, a microbe, pills, and a stethoscope.
Davis’s icon system could help advance the idea of using emojis in doctor-patient interactions, especially for patients who cannot express themselves. The system should be universal and easy to understand, and clear standards should be established for how to use it in practice.
Like Davis, Dr. He urges medical organizations to take the communication potential of emojis seriously rather than dismissing them as mere entertainment.
As Dr. He puts it, “Emojis have become part of global communication, and medical societies and organizations must take them seriously.” Creating and approving a specialized medical list of graphic icons could have a major positive impact for clinicians.
