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FAQs

What Makes a Good Question to Ask?

Inciteful Med can handle almost any medical question

Inciteful Med can handle almost any medical question — but how you phrase it changes the quality of the answer. A few patterns work especially well.

Be specific about what you want to learn

A vague question like "Tell me about diabetes" gets a textbook overview. A focused question like "What does the latest research say about GLP-1 agonists vs. SGLT2 inhibitors for type 2 diabetes in someone with CKD stage 3?" gets a focused answer with directly relevant citations. You can always start broad and ask follow up questions as you go.

Include context that matters

If you're researching for a specific person, mention what's relevant:

  • The condition or symptom
  • Relevant history (kidney disease, pregnancy, prior treatments tried)
  • Demongraphics (sex, age, race)
  • What you're trying to decide

You don't have to write a full case - Inciteful Med will pull from records you've added. But explicit context helps when records are thin.

Frame what kind of answer you want

  • "What does the evidence say about..." - for a research summary
  • "What questions should I ask my doctor about..." - for visit prep
  • "What are the trade-offs between... and..." - for treatment comparisons
  • "What are the side effects of..." - for medication research
  • "Are there clinical trials for..." - to surface trials specifically

Examples that work well

  • "Compare medication options for atrial fibrillation in someone over 75 with normal kidney function."
  • "What's the latest evidence on the effectiveness of pelvic floor PT for chronic pelvic pain?"
  • "Help me prepare questions for my oncologist before deciding between active surveillance and radiation for low-risk prostate cancer."
  • "Summarize current guidelines for screening colonoscopy intervals after a single adenoma."

What doesn't work as well

  • One-word topics ("cancer", "thyroid")
  • Yes/no questions with no context ("should I take statins?")
  • Non-medical questions ("what's the weather?") - Inciteful Med will tell you it can't help

Follow up to dig deeper

Don't try to fit everything into one question. Ask a focused first question, then use follow-ups to drill down. Follow-ups are faster. See Asking follow-up questions.

See also