Modem Medicine
Health Professionals list their favorite trusted Web sites
Modem Medicine
Knight Ridder
Judith Blake
Your bunions are killing you. You begin surfing the Net for solutions. The problem: which Web sites can you trust to provide reliable information on fixing your foot?
From minor ailments to life-threatening diseases, an overwhelming cache of information resides on countless Web sites devoted to health. The challenge comes in sorting through it all and deciding which so-called facts are true and which advice merits serious attention.
"The most important thing about going to a Web site is deciding whether you trust the creators of the content on the site," says Dr. Peter Tarczy-Hornoch. A University of Washington specialist in neonatology, Tarczy-Hornoch has developed an expertise in public access to medical information on the Internet.
If you're not certain whether to trust a site's content creators, at least be sure the site comes recommended by authorities you do trust, Tarczy-Hornoch says. Those authorities might include universities, government agencies and professional organizations (American Cancer Society or American Academy of Pediatricians, for example).
Even if you feel confident about a Web site, never base your health-care decisions solely on Internet information, experts caution. Even if the information is accurate and complete, it may not apply to your particular situation. Always consult your health-care provider.
With that caveat, here are recommendations assembled by the Medical Library Association, an organization of librarians who deal daily with health and medical information:
MEDLINEplus: Highly rated by experts on public access to medical information. Extremely comprehensive; easy to navigate. Links to hundreds of authoritative sites. Sponsor: National Library of Medicine, part of the national Institutes of Health.
www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
: Huge store of information, with sections on health of infants, children, teens, men, women and older adults; travel, environmental and occupational health; food-borne illness; injuries and more. Spanish/English. Sponsor: Federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
www.cdc.gov
Healthfinder: Provides access to pamphlets and documents on seemingly every health topic, prepared by government agencies and reliable organizations. Covers countless disorders, health services and programs, plus information on Medicare, Medicaid, private insurance and much more. Spanish/English. Sponsor: U.S. Dept. of Health and Human Services. www.healthfinder.gov
Health Web:
Links to hundreds of reliable sources on a vast array of health topics, including such specialties as bioethics, transplants and the health of ethnic minorities. Sponsor: health-sciences libraries of the Greater Midwest Region of the National Network of Libraries of Medicine.
www.healthweb.org
Mayo Clinic: The famous Minnesota clinic presents information on myriad health topics, all in easy to understand language. Highly user-friendly, with lots of advice on recognizing and dealing with health problems. Sponsor: Mayo Clinic. www.mayoclinic.com
MEDEM: Wide-ranging information compiled from the libraries of 44 professional medical associations. Access to a free children's health newsletter. Sponsors: Seven medical organizations, among them the American Medical Association and the American Academy of Pediatrics.
www.medem.com/MedLB/medlib_entry.cfm
National Women's Health Information Center: News, issues and information of special interest to women: hormone-replacement therapy, pregnancy, breast-feeding, minority women's health and more. Sponsor: National Office on Women's Health of the Department of Health and Human Services. www.4women.gov
NOAH:
New York Online Access to Health: There's useful information here about a large array of disorders, as well as on diagnostic tests, home safety, healthy living, aging, children's health and other special topics. Sponsor: New York Online Access to Health, a consortium of New York City-area public and medical-school libraries.
www.noah-health.org
Here is a site recommended by experts in alternative medicine and nutrition:
Bastyr Library Resources: Extensive information on complementary and alternative-medicine topics such as herbs, chiropractic, naturopathic medicine, massage therapy and vegetarian eating. Links to major alternative-medicine organizations. Sponsor: Bastyr University, Kenmore, Wash.
www.bastyr.edu/library/resources
*These librarians work at universities, hospitals and public libraries, organizing an providing information to medical professionals and/or the public. Their jobs put them in a position to evaluate health-related Web sites with authority.
A list of the association's 100 favorite sites can be found at:
www.caphis.mlanet.org/consumer/index.html
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