Medicine+on+the+Web

= Medicine on the Web = As health care continues to be one of the largest expenditures in the U.S. economy, it makes sense that people would go to the internet to research their medical needs, whether for existing conditions, family health problems, drug information, or other health topics. Even as far back as 1996, the National Library of Medicine's free PubMed database jumped from 7 million in 1996, to 120 million visitors in 1997, all of them attributed to "non-professionals" seeking health information (Eysenbach & Jadad, 2001). The two sites below demonstrate how the Web can be used effectively for seeking out health related information, followed by a brief discussion on how consumers can still face barriers in seeking out health information on the Web.

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MedlinePlus.gov
MedlinePlus is a non-commercial consumer health information database run by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) and the National Institutes of Health (NIH). It is comprised of directories and over 800 links to health information topics. Many of its pages are “easy to read” for the general consumer, with its materials falling in between a 5th to 8th grade reading level. Its navigation is based on, but not limited to, three basic areas: Health Topics, Drugs & Supplements, and Videos & Cool Tools. MedlinePlus provides the initial information for Health Topics, but other assets of the system are provided from other sources, e.g., the Merriam-Webster Medical Dictionary; the interactive tutorials from the Patient Education Institute, or drug and supplement information from the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists (ASHP). Finally, MedlinePlus follows a “quality guideline” protocol so that other linked Web sites in MedlinePlus’ directories are authoritative, reliable, and kept up-to-date (MedlinePlus, 2011). Its main indexing methods stem from its quality guidelines: resources are either provided by the NLM’s and NIH’s own databases, such as MEDLINE/PubMed, or information is outsourced to other Web sites that adhere to the strict guideline rules. To qualify, Web sites must project quality, authority, and accuracy in their sites’ health content; the content must be free; and the availability and maintenance of the sites’ pages must be current and up to date (MedlinePlus, 2010). While MedlinePlus uses its own quality guidelines, it does not guarantee that all the outsourced information will be at the same reading level.

Tutorial for Searching MedlinePlus (MedlinePlus does not allow the embedding of their videos) media type="youtube" key="kK4RRiAOYj0" height="315" width="560"

WebMD.com


While WebMD does allow advertising, it’s information is peer-reviewed and is well-credited by a number of reliable medical sources. The news, educational material, and consumer information is free from sponser influence. Its "Editorial Policy" states that it creates content using the following criteria guidelines: Relevance, Clinical Significance, and Trends. The policy makes clear that, "Anyone who serves on the WebMD Editorial staff must fully disclose any financial or other interests that he or she may have in any drug, biotech, medical device, or other company perceived to have influence in the healthcare industry. Such disclosure must be made to the individual's immediate supervisor at the time of hiring or at the time that the financial or other interest develops. The supervisor will determine whether the interest presents a conflict and, if so, what must be done to eliminate it (WebMD, 2011)." Much like MedlinePlus, it provides a host of topics and categories on popular health topics. WebMD also provides a free, secure member account in which users can track their diet plans and weight loss, as well as manage their family’s vaccinations.

Consumer Barriers?
Clearly these sites provide trusted health information for consumers, yet there are still barriers that exist that may hamper consumers from finding what they want (Eysenbach & Jadad, 2001):
 * Consumers may defer to Web searching instead of directly seeking information from their immediate providers
 * Professionals may be concerned that consumers are encountering misinformation from non-reliable sites (in contrast to MedlinePlus or WebMD)
 * The still dominant, low health literacy rate prohibits consumers from understanding their conditions or needs. Do consumer health sites compound this trend, even though their reading levels are supposedly at the 8th grade level?
 * Even with such sites available, the "Web divide" between those with internet access and those without still hampers thousands of consumers from obtaining useful health information
 * Given the free nature of the Web, there is no consistency in providing quality control of health information. How do consumers know what to trust and what not to?

**References**
Eysenbach, G., & Jadad, A. (2001). Evidence-based patient choice and consumer health informatics in the Internet age. //Journal of Medical Internet Research, 3//: e19.

MedlinePlus, (2011). Frequently asked questions. Retrieved from []l

MedlinePlus, (2010). MedlinePlus quality guidelines. Retrieved from []

Oermann, M.H., Lesley, M.L., & VanderWal, J.S. (2005). Using Web sites on quality health care for teaching consumers in public libraries. //Quality Management in Health Care, 14//: 188-195.

WebMD, (2011). Why should I sign up for WebMD? Retrieved from @http://www.webmd.com/why-should-i-sign-up-for-webmd

WebMD, (2011). Editorial policy. Retrieved from http://www.webmd.com/about-webmd-policies/about-editorial-policy