Finding it on the Web: A Guide to Finding and Evaluating Health Information on the Internet
Presented by:
Carol Aebli, AMLS
Borgess Library
Borgess Medical Center
Kalamazoo, MI 49048-1666
caebli@borgess.org
Revised: October 1, 2002
Evaluating Web Sites
Content
Is the information believable? If claims are made, are they backed up with evidence to support them with references?
What is the purpose of the site? Is it informational or promotional? Sites that sell products may offer valid information as well, but beware of a possible bias in that information. An URL that ends in .com indicates a commercial site, .org a non-profit organization, .edu an educational facility, and .gov a government agency.
Is there more glitz than substance? A flashy site with lots of graphics may disguise the fact that there is, in fact, very little information imparted. In addition, such a site may take a long time to load.
Does the site offer unique information? Can this information be found just as easily in other resources, such as books? Consider the time spent to find relevant links compared to going to the library and checking out a book.
Is there a charge for this information? What are the qualifications of the person or persons offering to sell the information? Will your privacy be safeguarded, if you are asked to answer personal questions? Check out the privacy link that should be located on the site's home page. If there isn't one, move on.
Authority
An author or contact person is usually named in the footer of a web page. Is a person or organization listed as content provider for the web site?
Who is in charge of the site? There should be a way to contact the web master through an e-mail link. Also, see if there is an "About this site" link.
Are the author's qualifications given? If so, do they make this person qualified to give this information? If the advice given is medical, does the author have the appropriate medical background?
If an organization is hosting the site, is it a legitimate organization or just a front for a commercial enterprise? If the material presented is promotional, is this made clear?
Who is the intended audience? This should be on the main page. Look for a mission statement or some other indication of why the site exists. Is it for promotion, information, or persuasion?
Many web sites rely on advertising for their support. Does the site itself appear to be an advertising site? Does the presence of advertising seem to affect the information given? Note any biases.
Currency
Pages should be marked with the last date the site was updated, or at least reviewed. Remember that in medicine, change is constant and frequent.
Are links current, or do they lead to a lot of dead ends?
Organization
Is the site well organized? Can information be found easily, or do you have to spend a lot of time navigating a site to find what you want?
Are there a lot of features that may not be supported by your computer, such as video or sound? Is an alternative text-only or no-frames version offered? How long does the site take to load and to navigate?
Does the site have its own search engine or otherwise allow keyword searching of its site? This is highly desirable in a site that offers a lot of information.
Are there links to other sites? Are they organized and annotated?
Health-Related Web Sites
CAPHIS
http://caphis.mlanet.org/
This is the home page for the Consumer and Patient Health Information section of the Medical Library Association. Clicking on the icon in the upper right corner of the page, "For Health Consumers," will lead you to the main page of "Health Sites You Can Trust: The CAPHIS Top 100 List." This list is reviewed by the CAPHIS Top 100 Committee bimonthly, following specified guidelines. In addition, there is also a directory of consumer health libraries which is searchable.
FamilyDoctor
http://www.familydoctor.org
Sponsored by the American Academy of Family Physicians, this site includes health information handouts, self-care flowcharts, drug information, and herbal and alternative remedies.
Healthfinder
http://www.healthfinder.gov/
This is a consumer health information web site offered by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Sections include health library (health information), just for you (specialized topics), health care (hospitals and doctors), and directory of healthfinder© organizations. There are also links to current health news and a search engine.
Mayo Clinic
http://www.mayoclinic.com/
Departments include diseases and conditions, health a to z, condition centers, healthy living centers, drug information, first-aid and self-care guide, and answers from Mayo Clinic. The site can also be personalized, with life-style planners and decision guides.
MEDLINEplus
http://www.medlineplus.gov/
This is a government site sponsored by the National Library of Medicine, offering information on health topics, dictionaries, databases, clearinghouses, directories and organizations. There is also a link to PubMed, which provides the ability to search the Medline database for more detailed and professional information.
Michigan eLibrary
http://www.michigan.gov/hal/1,1607,7-129-15490---,00.html
This site has long provided access to a wealth of information available on the Internet, arranged by subject. In addition, it recently has added additional services available only to Michigan residents, providing access to databases usually only available through libraries. A Michigan resident can log on from his home computer, using his driver's license or Michigan identification card number, to use databases such as OCLC's FirstSearch and the Gale Group's General Reference Center Gold and Health and Wellness Resource Center databases. The Gale Group databases include many full-text articles. FirstSearch offerings include CINAHL (for nursing journals) and WorldCat (a global book catalog).
NOAH: New York Online Access to Health
http://www.noah-health.org/
A good source of full-text brochures on a variety of health topics, this site offers information in both English and Spanish.
QuackWatch
http://www.quackwatch.com/
Hosted by Dr. Stephen Barrett, this site includes numerous articles on the validity of questionable medical practices and advice for the health consumer. He also has a page on how to spot a "Quacky" web site (see References).
References
Anderson, P. F. "Consumer Health Web Site Evaluation Checklist (patient-oriented) (PDF file). [30 July 2002] A detailed checklist (AcrobatReader is required).
http://www-personal.umich.edu/~pfa/pro/courses/EvalPtEd.pdf
Barrett, Stephen. "How to spot a "Quacky" web site." Revised June 10, 2000. http://www.quackwatch.com/01QuackeryRelatedTopics/quackweb.html
"Consumer health: An online manual." National Network of Libraries of Medicine, South Central Region, 2001. Includes a section on evaluating health sites, as well as a list of consumer health information web sites and web sites in Spanish.
http://nnlm.gov/scr/conhlth/manualidx.htm
Evaluating health information on the Internet." Health Summit Working Group, 1999. Includes sites of groups developing criteria for online health information.
http://hsc.virginia.edu/hs-library/newsletter/1999/april/evaluate.html
"Evaluating health information on the Internet: how good are your sources?" AARP, 2002. Includes a link to their web site, http://www.aarp.org/bulletin/may00/health.html, which is a compilation of 100 web sites on health and medicine.
http://www.aarp.org/confacts/health/wwwhealth.html
"Evaluation health information on the Internet." Health File #84. British Columbia Ministry of Health Services, 2002. Includes links to web sites dealing with Internet site evaluation.
http://www.hlth.gov.bc.ca/hlthfile/hfile84.html
"Guide for patients: how to find the best health information online." Bmj.com Ferguson 324 (7337):555 Data Supplement – Guidelines for patients, emphasizing the need to supplement, not replace, medical advice.
http://bmj.com/cgi/content/full/324/7337/555/DC1
"How to evaluate health information on the Internet: Questions and answers." National Cancer Institute, Cancer Facts. http://nnlm.gov/pnr/hip/criteria.html http://cis.nci.nih.gov/fact/2_10.htm
"Is this health information good for me?" National Network of Libraries of Medicine, Pacific Northwest Region, 2001.
http://nnlm.gov/pnr/hip/criteria.html
Pace, Brian. "Health information on the Internet: JAMA Patient Page." JAMA 285(20:2672, May 23/30, 2001 (PDF file). A brief, one-page guide from the Journal of the American Medical Association (AcrobatReader is required).
http://jama.ama-assn.org/issues/v285n20/fpdf/jpg0523.pdf
"Tips for health consumers: Finding quality health information on the Internet." Internet Healthcare Coalition, 2002.
http://www.ihealthcoalition.org/content/tips.html
"A user's guide to finding and evaluating health information on the Web." Medical Library Association, 2002. Offering evaluation tips, this site also includes recommended websites for cancer, diabetes, and heart disease.
http://www.mlanet.org/resources/userguide.html