Why do we choose the Internet instead of the doctor next door?

The Internet as a site for medicines in grey zones.

Scientific advisory board

Cecilia Fredriksson is a professor in Ethnology at the Department of Service Management and Service Science, Lund University. Her research revolves around the culture of consumption, from both contemporary and historical perspectives, sustainability and value creating practices. Cecilia Fredriksson’s interest in experiences of natural and cultural landscapes, in combination with analyzes of the aesthetics and material culture of everyday life, has resulted in several innovative projects in the borderland between the humanities and biology.

Dr. Tomas Nilsson is a trained pharmacist, with a PhD in biochemical pharmacology from Uppsala University. Since 2011 he is an assessor at the Swedish Medical Products Agency, working against falsified, and other unauthorised medicines, and also with products in the borderline between medicines and other legislations. He represents Sweden in Council of Europe’s expert committee for falsified medical products and the Borderline and Classification Group under EU-Innovation Network.

Dr Anja Smith is a development economist and academic. After spending eight years of her career consulting in access to financial services and financial inclusion, she pursued a PhD in economics with a focus on health systems on a full-time basis. This led to a switch of her research focus to health and health systems. Her PhD and post-doctorate focused on topics related to the financing, delivery and quality of healthcare in South Africa. Anja works as an independent economic expert and a researcher at Research on Socioeconomic Policy (RESEP) at the Economics Department of Stellenbosch University.

Dr. Lisa Sugiura is a Senior Lecturer in Criminology and Cybercrime at the School of Criminology and Criminal Justice at the University of Portsmouth, and the Deputy Director of the Cybercrime Awareness Clinic. Her research focuses on online deviance, and technology-facilitated gender abuse and sexual violence. She is the author of the books: Respectable Deviance and Purchasing Medicine Online: opportunities and risks for consumers Palgrave Macmillan, and The Incel Rebellion: the rise of the manosphere and the virtual war against women Emerald publishing. 

Sally Wyatt is Professor of Digital Cultures, and a member of the Maastricht University Science, Technology and Society Studies research group. Wyatt has been conducting research about digital technologies and healthcare for more than 20 years. Together with Andrew Webster, she was the founding co-editor of the Health, Technology and Society book series, published by Palgrave Macmillan. Together with Anna Harris and Susan Kelly, Wyatt is co-author of Cybergenetics. Health Genetics and New Media (2016, Routlege).