Consumer Health Information Sources in the 21st Century
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.5931/djim.v7i2.62Keywords:
MedlinePlus, Wikipedia, health, Web 2.0, Information in SocietyAbstract
When consumers have health questions, they often seek answers at online sources. Consumer health information is readily available on the Internet but the lack of quality control on the Internet is problematic. This essay examines the following: quality issues associated with online health information, the features and benefits of several consumer health websites, how Web 2.0 innovations can add an interactive layer to basic online consumer health resources, and the role that information professionals play in the field of consumer health information.
References
<table style="height: 100%;" border="0" width="100%"><tbody><tr><td height="2px"></td></tr> <tr><td class="resultB" colspan="4" width="100%" height="100%" valign="top">Autism. (2006, November 28). In Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved 22:48, January 16, 2011, from http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Autism&oldid=90569094#Causes<br /> <br /> Bawden, D., & Robinson, L. (2009). The dark side of information: Overload, anxiety and other paradoxes and pathologies. Journal of Information Science, 35(2), 180-191. DOI: 10.1177/0165551508095781 CrossRef<br /> <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/0165551508095781" target="_blank">http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/0165551508095781</a><br /> <br /> Boden, C. (2009). Overcoming the linguistic divide: A barrier to consumer health information. Journal of the Canadian Health Libraries Association, 30, 75-80. CrossRef<br /> <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.5596/c09-020" target="_blank">http://dx.doi.org/10.5596/c09-020</a><br /> <br /> Canadian Council on Learning. (2007). Health Literacy Interactive. Retrieved from: http://www.ccl-cca.ca/cclflash/healthliteracy/map_help_e.html<br /> <br /> Canadian Medical Association (CMA). (2010). Health care transformation in Canada: Change that works. Care that lasts. Retrieved from http://www.cma.ca/multimedia/CMA/Content_Images/Inside_cma/Advocacy/HCT/HCT-2010report_en.pdf<br /> <br /> Carter, N.J., & Wallace, R.L. (2008). Collaborating with public libraries, public health departments, and rural hospitals to provide consumer health information services. Journal of Consumer Health on the Internet, 11(4), 1-14. DOI: 10.1300/J381v11n04_01 CrossRef<br /> <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1300/J381v11n04_01" target="_blank">http://dx.doi.org/10.1300/J381v11n04_01</a><br /> <br /> Chimato, M.C., & Werner, S.E. (2006). Building community relationships. Journal of Hospital Librarianship, 6(2), 15-25. DOI: 10.1300/J186v06n02_02 CrossRef<br /> <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1300/J186v06n02_02" target="_blank">http://dx.doi.org/10.1300/J186v06n02_02</a><br /> <br /> Consumer Health Information Providers Interest Group. (2010). Top 10 Canadian consumer health websites. Retrieved from: http://www.chla-absc.ca/chipig/Events/CHLA2010poster.pdf<br /> <br /> Dalhousie University Libraries. (2010). Evaluation of health information on the Web. Retrieved from http://dal.ca.libguides.com/content.php?pid=88898&sid=668994<br /> <br /> Deer, B. (2011). Secrets of the MMR scare: How the vaccine crisis was meant to make money. BMJ, 342:c5258. DOI: 10.1136/bmj.c5258. CrossRef<br /> <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1136/bmj.c5258" target="_blank">http://dx.doi.org/10.1136/bmj.c5258</a><br /> PMid:21224310<br /> <br /> Experian. (2010, November 6). Top 20 sites & engines. Retrieved from http://www.hitwise.com/us/datacenter/main/dashboard-10133.html<br /> <br /> Eysenbach, G., & Köhler, C. (2002). How do consumers search for an appraise health information on the world wide web? Qualitative study using focus groups, usability tests, and in-depth interviews. British Medical Journal, 324(7337), 573-577. CrossRef<br /> <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1136/bmj.324.7337.573" target="_blank">http://dx.doi.org/10.1136/bmj.324.7337.573</a><br /> PMid:11884321 PMCid:78994<br /> <br /> Helliwell, M. (2006). Comfy chairs, lovely books, and no librarian: What is the professional standard for setting up a CHIS? Journal of Hospital Librarianship, 7 (1), 53-62. DOI: 10.1300/J186v07n01_05 CrossRef<br /> <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1300/J186v07n01_05" target="_blank">http://dx.doi.org/10.1300/J186v07n01_05</a><br /> <br /> Jacobsen, S. (2008). GetHELP health literacy in Skagit Valley, WA. Journal of Hospital Librarianship, 8(1), 53-60. DOI: 10.1080/15323260801931955 CrossRef<br /> <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/15323260801931955" target="_blank">http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/15323260801931955</a><br /> <br /> Laurent, M.R., & Vickers, T.J. (2009). Seeking health information online: Does Wikipedia matter? Journal of the American Medical Informatics Association, 16(4), 471-479. DOI: 10.1197/jamia.M3059 CrossRef<br /> <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1197/jamia.M3059" target="_blank">http://dx.doi.org/10.1197/jamia.M3059</a><br /> PMid:19390105 PMCid:2705249<br /> <br /> LaValley, S. (2009). Delaware health source: Consumer health libraries and health literacy outreach. Journal of Consumer Health on the Internet, 13(2), 180-186. DOI: 10.1080/15398280902897103 CrossRef<br /> <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/15398280902897103" target="_blank">http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/15398280902897103</a><br /> <br /> Lester, J., & Koehler, W. C. Jr. (2007). The economics of information. In Fundamentals of information studies: Understanding information and its environment (2nd ed.). (pp. 219-240). New York: Neal-Schuman Publishers.<br /> <br /> Lindsey, D. (2010). Evaluating quality control of Wikipedia’s feature articles. First Monday, 15(4). Retrieved from http://www.uic.edu/htbin/cgiwrap/bin/ojs/index.php/fm/article/view/2721/2482<br /> <br /> Marshall, L. A., & Williams, D. (2006). Health information: Does quality count for the consumer? How consumers evaluate the quality of health information materials across a variety of media. Journal of Librarianship and Information Science, 38(3), 141-156. CrossRef<br /> <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/0961000606066575" target="_blank">http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/0961000606066575</a><br /> <br /> Marton, C. (2011). Consumer health 2.0 in Canada: A descriptive analysis of the use of Web 2.0 technologies on Canadian consumer health information websites. Journal of the Canadian Health Libraries Association, 32, 29-34. Retrieved from http://pubs.chla-absc.ca/journal/jchla CrossRef<br /> <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.5596/c11-009" target="_blank">http://dx.doi.org/10.5596/c11-009</a><br /> <br /> Mayer, S., Smith, K.H. & Rios, G. (2008). Consumer health information services 2.0. Journal of Consumer Health on the Internet, 12(3), 187-199. CrossRef<br /> <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/15398280802143566" target="_blank">http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/15398280802143566</a><br /> <br /> Miller, N., Tyler, R.J., & Backus, J.E.B. (2004). MedlinePlus®: The National Library of Medicine® brings quality information to health consumers. Library Trends, 53(2), 375-388.<br /> <br /> National Network of Libraries of Medicine. (2010). Health literacy. Retrieved from http://nnlm.gov/outreach/consumer/hlthlit.html<br /> <br /> Olney, C.A., Warner, D.G., Rayna, G., Wood, F.B., & Siegel, E.R. (2007). MedlinePlus and the challenge of low health literacy: findings from the Colonias project. Journal of the Medical Library Association, 95(1), 31-39.<br /> PMid:17252064 PMCid:1773027<br /> <br /> Petch, T. (2004). Content analysis of selected health information websites. Retrieved from http://ir.lib.sfu.ca/handle/1892/4038<br /> <br /> Picard, A. (2011, February 6). Medical fraud revealed in discredited vaccine-autism study. The Globe and Mail. Retrieved from http://www.theglobeandmail.com<br /> <br /> Pullen, K.A., Jones, D., & Timm, D.F. (2010). Healthy connections for consumers: National Library of Medicine websites. Poster presented at the meeting of the Medical Library Association, Washington, D.C.<br /> <br /> Revolution Health. (2010). Community. Retrieved from http://www.revolutionhealth.com<br /> <br /> Revolution Health. (2007). Posting guidelines. Retrieved from http://www.revolutionhealth.com/about/posting-guidelines<br /> <br /> Rost, P. (2007, August 30). Abbott caught altering entries to Wikipedia [Web log message]. Retrieved from http://www.brandweeknrx.com/2007/08/abbott-caught-a.html<br /> <br /> Siegel, E.R., Logan, R.A, Harnsberger, R.L., Cravedi, K., Krause, J.A., Lyon, B., Hajarian, K., Uhl, J., Ruffin, A., & Lindberg, D.A.B. (2006). Information Rx: Evaluation of a new informatics tool for physicians, patients, and libraries. Information Services & Use, 26, 1-10.<br /> PMid:17060946<br /> <br /> Spoetnik, L. (2009, September 14). The Trouble with Wikipedia as a Source for Medical Information [Web log message]. Retrieved from http://laikaspoetnik.wordpress.com/2009/09/14/the-trouble-with-wikipedia-as-a-source-for-medical-information/<br /> <br /> Smith, S., & Duman, M. (2009). The state of consumer health information: an overview. Health Information and Libraries Journal, 26, 260-278. DOI:10.1111/j.1471-1842.2009.00870.x CrossRef<br /> <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1471-1842.2009.00870.x" target="_blank">http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1471-1842.2009.00870.x</a><br /> <br /> Smith, K.H. & Mayer, S. (2009). The “Big Three” consumer health sites and web technology trends: MedlinePlus, Healthfinder, and CAPHIS. Journal of Consumer Health on the Internet, 13(3), 213-222. DOI: 10.1080/15398280903119705 CrossRef<br /> <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/15398280903119705" target="_blank">http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/15398280903119705</a><br /> <br /> Statistics Canada. (2007). Internet users who reported searching for medical or health-related information [Data file]. Retrieved from CANSIM using CHASS database, University of Toronto on November 14, 2010.<br /> <br /> U.S. National Library of Medicine. (2010a). MedlinePlus quality guidelines. Retrieved from http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/criteria.html<br /> <br /> U.S. National Library of Medicine. (2010b). About MedlinePlus. Retrieved from http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/aboutmedlineplus.html<br /> <br /> U.S. National Library of Medicine. (2010c). Congressional Justification FY2011. Retrieved from http://www.nlm.nih.gov/about/2011CJ.html<br /> <br /> U.S. National Library of Medicine. (2010d). MedlinePlus FAQ: Easy-to-read documents. Retrieved from http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/faq/easytoread.html<br /> <br /> Trettin, L.D., May, J.C., & McKeehan, N. (2008). Teaching teens to “Get Net Smart for Good Health”: Comparing interventions for an Internet training program. Journal of the Medical Library Association, 96(4), 370-374. DOI: 10.3163/1536-5050.96.4.013 CrossRef<br /> <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.3163/1536-5050.96.4.013" target="_blank">http://dx.doi.org/10.3163/1536-5050.96.4.013</a><br /> PMid:18974815 PMCid:2568845<br /> <br /> Wikipedia:WikiProject Medicine. (2011, April 14). In Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved 14:35, April 24, 2010 from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:WikiProject_MedicineWikipedia:WikiProjectMedicine/Assessment. (2011, April 3). In Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved 13:53, April 24, 2010 from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:WikiProject_Medicine/Assessment<br /> <br /> Wofford, J.L., Smith, E.D., & Miller, D.P. (2005). The multimedia computer for office-based patient education: a systematic review. Patient Education and Counseling, 59, 148-157. doi:10.1016/j.pec.2004.10.011 CrossRef<br /> <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.pec.2004.10.011" target="_blank">http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.pec.2004.10.011</a><br /> PMid:16257619</td></tr></tbody></table>
Downloads
Published
2011-09-28
Issue
Section
Articles
License
Papers published in the Dalhousie Journal of Interdisciplinary Management must be the original, unpublished work of the author. Contributors are responsible for obtaining any copyright clearances required in relation to their work.
Authors submitting a paper to the Dalhousie Journal of Interdisciplinary Management automatically agree to grant a limited license to DJIM if and when the manuscript is accepted for publication. This license gives permission for DJIM to publish the paper in a given issue and to maintain the work in the electronic journal archive. DJIM also submits issues to institutional repositories and Open Access repositories.
Contributors agree to each reader accessing, downloading, or printing one copy of their article for their own personal use or research. All other copyrights remain with the author, subject to the requirements that any republication of the work be accompanied by an acknowledgement that the work was first published in the Dalhousie Journal of Interdisciplinary Management and that the DJIM Editorial Chair must be notified of any republication of a work first published in DJIM.
Dalhousie Journal of Interdisciplinary Management
c/o School of Information Management
Faculty of Management
Dalhousie University
Kenneth C. Rowe Management Building
6100 University Avenue
Halifax, Nova Scotia B3H 3J5
Canada
Email: djim@dal.ca
Authors should recognize that, because of the nature of the Internet, the publisher has no control over unauthorized copying or editing of protected works.
