Patient questioning in Chinese online medical consultations: an interactional speech act approach

Patient questioning plays a pivotal role in medical encounters, especially in Online Medical Consultations (OMCs). This paper attempts to report the speech acts and interactional dynamics of patient questioning in OMCs through the lens of the finite typology of speech acts. The findings indicate that patient questioning is a complex interactional act, realized through a cluster of speech acts, such as Request, Disclose, Tell, and others, presenting different interactional dynamics in the opening, core, and closing phases of OMCs. This study enhances the current understanding of how patient questioning functions within OMCs and underscores the importance of effective communication to facilitate patient-centered care. Furthermore, exploring the speech patterns of patient questioning in OMCs provides valuable insights that can empower patients with effective questioning strategies, thereby contributing to the overall efficiency of OMCs.