People "doing their own research" about COVID vaccines get ridiculed as science-denying nutjobs. Has something changed?
1. Do your own research -> see something concerning -> ask your doctor to verify/interpret -> follow doctor's orders
2. Do your own research -> see something concerning -> accept your research as truth
#1 is valid and good.
#2 is bad.
This has always been the case.
Sure, in the sense that you can get second opinions if you're extra concerned about the topic.
If you're pregnant or have a blood clotting issue, by all means get a first and second opinion if you're worried about getting the vaccine.
But don't think that you are more qualified than medical professionals to understand the risks and side effects (unless of course you are a medical professional).
In the general case, a physician is obviously better than a patient in terms of being informed.
On the margin, however, a well-researched patient will almost always be better informed than a physician accustomed to the average patient. This is particularly relevant to the ~130 IQ HN populace.
It's quite dangerous and egotistical to think that you are in that group, though. When most people think they're a better than average driver, many are bound to be wrong.
If you think you're right about something and the doctor is wrong, get a second opinion. Don't assume you know better than a medical professional.
Everywhere did I say that you are much more likely to make mistakes than your doctors.
What you should be saying is that a more-informed person is less likely to make mistakes than a less-informed person.
You assume that doctors, in the couple of hours they may dedicate each day to catch up on all of the many plethora issues affecting all of their patients covering thousands of different areas of research that affect human health (and retain all of these things), is going to be more informed about the particular health issue affecting one person, who is extremely invested in this one aspect of their own health, and can dedicate the same or greater amount of their time researching that specific issue.
A specialist, possibly - but a general practitioner - unlikely.