Beyond TikTok Medicine: How Employers Can Bring Trust Back to Healthcare

Today, before most people book a doctor’s appointment, they scroll, swipe, and search. Health has become content, and platforms like TikTok, Instagram, YouTube, and AI chatbots are now the front door to medical advice for a growing share of the population. 

Employers are increasingly caught up in changing attitudes about health and healthcare as half of US adults under 50 are now getting health and wellness information from influencers or podcasters. And, the shift is only growing as the younger generation enters the workforce, with one in three Gen Zers stating they turn to TikTok for medical advice. Understanding the nuances of these new expectations is essential to structuring modern benefits plans that provide both reliable information and solutions.

How Did We Get Here?

This new reality is less a passing fad and more a reflection of how healthcare access has evolved. Over time, patients have shifted from doctor visits as the sole source of information to online search engines and, more recently, to AI-powered and social platforms, as shorter appointments, rising demand for personalization, and unprecedented digital access reshape expectations about how and where people seek health guidance. While this evolution has expanded access to information, it has also introduced new challenges around trust, accuracy, and continuity of care.

Trust, eroded. Studies document how many patients, especially women and people of color, consistently feel dismissed or minimized in short clinical encounters, undermining confidence in the system. Meanwhile, the momentum for science and healthcare trust that surged during the early COVID years has receded, as polarized narratives corrode public faith.

Access and affordability gaps. In May 2025, AMN Healthcare reported that new patient appointments now take an average of 31 days to schedule, which is a 19% increase since 2022 and 48% since 2004. At the same time, 91 million Americans (~1/3 of the population) said they were unable to afford quality care in 2024, an all‑time high. These system constraints can push people toward fast, free, or “inspirational” sources like social media.

General dissatisfaction & demand for personalization. In 2024, only 44% of U.S. adults rated healthcare as “good” or “excellent,” down 10 points since 2020. Meanwhile, 88% of healthcare consumers expect the same personalization in care that they get in online shopping or travel planning, yet our care models rarely deliver that. Add to this the fact that conditions like GI disorders, weight management, and menopause require individualized care, as the same symptom can lead to entirely different diagnoses and treatment plans for different patients.

Employers Are Caught in the Crossfire

The question for employers is how to continue to meaningfully and economically service these changing medical expectations by their workers. With an expanded definition that now includes health, sleep, nutrition, fitness, appearance, and mindfulness, “wellness” is now a “top or important” priority for 84% of U.S. consumers — meaning it is now a baseline expectation of a benefit plan.

Employers are increasingly caught between employees eager to act on the health information they encounter online, a crowded marketplace of digital vendors competing for benefit dollars, and real clinical needs that can be difficult to distinguish amid the noise. While many solutions promise convenience and engagement, not all are built with the clinical rigor, care coordination, or outcomes measurement required to meaningfully improve health. 

Tools optimized primarily for enrollment or user activity may create short-term enthusiasm but fail to address underlying conditions. Without clear pathways into evidence-based care, employees can remain stuck in cycles of self-guided experimentation, delaying appropriate treatment and allowing issues to escalate, ultimately increasing both human and financial costs.

Virtual Care Offers a Better Way Forward.

Fortunately, new virtual care models have emerged that address employee wellness demands through proven clinical care. Using telemedicine and digital tools to scale evidence-based treatments, interdisciplinary collaboration, and easy access and continuity over time, they can satisfy employee expectations while fulfilling employer demands for outcomes-based payment.

We’re already seeing how this model is transforming care across complex conditions where the traditional system has fallen short. In musculoskeletal health, virtual physical therapy combines remote coaching, AI-guided assessments, and escalation to in-person care when needed, cutting delays and unnecessary imaging. Menopause support, long overlooked, is being revitalized through virtual programs offering hormone therapy, behavioral coaching, and lifestyle guidance tailored to each individual. 

Likewise, in gastrointestinal care, virtual clinics scale access to medical providers, dietitians, and behavioral health specialists in a single, coordinated experience. This approach is increasingly recognized as essential for managing complex, chronic conditions like IBS and IBD, which require both medical and behavioral support.

What Employers Must Do: Building the Right Care Partnerships 

Employers and benefits consultants play a critical role, both in selecting the best, high-quality care solutions and in setting the conditions for their success. These decision-makers shape expectations, build trust, and determine which care options become visible, credible, and accessible within their organizations. Here are four recommendations for employers on the hunt for better solutions:

1. Demand rigor around outcomes.

Too many digital health solutions enter the conversation with compelling enrollment stats and user testimonials, but without clear evidence of meaningful clinical outcomes. Benefit leaders should approach these offerings with the same diligence applied to any healthcare decision. Is the care model grounded in medical evidence or simply following consumer trends? Are there measurable health outcomes—not just usage data? Will it integrate with existing systems like medical carriers, behavioral health partners, or EAPs, or does it stand alone in a silo? And importantly, is it financially and culturally accessible across your workforce? Scrutinizing these factors early protects both employees and the value of your investment.

2. Lower the barriers to high-value care.

Even the most effective solutions can’t succeed if employees can’t afford them or don’t know they exist. Benefit design plays a critical role in opening the front door to care. Prioritizing clinically validated virtual care options and reducing or eliminating out-of-pocket costs for these services can steer employees away from unvetted apps or social media quick fixes toward trusted, covered care. This is especially important for conditions where patients often self-manage for years before seeking help, such as GI distress, menopause, or chronic musculoskeletal pain.

3. Communicate with clarity, consistency, and care.

Awareness isn’t always the primary challenge; sometimes it's trust. To earn attention and engagement, employers need to go beyond plan documents and open enrollment blurbs. Use plain language, highlight real stories, and show the people and principles behind your chosen solutions. Consistent, human-centered communication through onboarding activities or communication channels like intranets and newsletters can help employees understand not just what’s available, but why it matters and why it can be trusted.

4. Choose Partners, Not Just Platforms

Effective care delivery shouldn’t be considered a one-off transaction but instead as an ongoing relationship. The most valuable vendor partners are those who offer more than an app or a feature. They also provide education, evidence, and engagement over time. Look for partners committed to collaborating with your team, supporting clinical navigation, and helping employees make informed decisions throughout their health journeys. That kind of partnership doesn’t just improve utilization — it builds trust, improves outcomes, and reduces long-term costs.

Turning the Tide: Avoiding the TikTok Trap

We know social media has driven awareness around people’s health; the challenge now is discernment. How do we help employees move from a flood of fragmented advice to clear, trustworthy pathways into care that actually works?

Employers, with the right partners, have the unique ability to bridge that gap by choosing care models built on clinical trust, not influencer appeal. In doing so, they do more than just manage benefits, they can help restore faith in the promise of healthcare.

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Brian Kastenholz leads employer partnerships at Oshi Health, revolutionizing the way people receive care for digestive health conditions. He has scaled access to Oshi’s life-changing GI care for millions of individuals and 100+ employers.