Evaluating Website Part 1 Essay

This is part one to a two part assignment. Identify a website to determine if it is a good site for you to recommend to your patient for health information. For this initial assignment, identify this website and in one paragraph  you will evaluate and elaborate why you picked this website. 

The following is alist of possible sites. You do not have to use one of these
https://www.askdrshah.com/cancer.aspx
http://www.weightymatters.ca/
https://www.drgreene.com/
https://hospicephysician.wordpress.com/
strokenetwork.org
myheartsisters.org.
https://www.hystersisters.com/
kidshealth.org
understood.org
foodallergy.org
https://www.theinnercompass.org/ (Links to an external site.)
https://www.msmindshift.com
https://www.alz.org
https://www.us.keepitpumping.com (Links to an external site.)
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Part 1-Website Evaluation. Evaluating Website Part 1 Essay

The World Wide Web, the ‘web’, or merely the ‘internet’, is a significant source of information for patients and is increasingly used worldwide. The popularity of the internet as source health information is also increasing. Data from Europe and the USA reveals that 61% of the adult population seek health information from the web (Jacob et al., 2017). Evidence suggests that the search for health information from the internet has exhilarated some people to be more active in managing their medical conditions. Although the internet is easily accessible a cost-effective resource for health information, it is mostly unregulated. The websites may contain low quality and inappropriate information, which is misleading to the patients (Kotsenas et al.,2018). The information offered may be challenging to read, comprehend and understand.

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Patients may turn to the internet in search of information regarding their health. Finding credible websites with correct information may be challenging for patients. Identifying and recommending a genuine website to the patients by care providers is vital in ensuring that their search for knowledge provides accurate information. The website identified is the Mayo Clinic – https://www.mayoclinic.org that offers detailed information on a broad range of illnesses. Patients can learn more about their diagnoses via the website while at home or healthcare facility.Evaluating Website Part 1 Essay

The information offered by the Mayo Clinic website is suitable for the general patient population (Kotsenas et al.,2018). Suitability is a vital aspect of health information, both spoken and written. Suitability helps predict how easy patient populations can understand health information. Besides, patients with low literacy skills need information that is easier to read than the general patient population. Some websites pay inadequate attention to the suitability of written health information. Lack of sensitivity bars many patients from understanding the information since the internet readership includes adult-patient populations with low literacy skills. Evidence shows that more than 25% of the adult population have low literacy skills. The Suitability Assessment of Materials (SAM) measures health information’s suitability in terms of content, demand, literacy, layout, graphics, learning motivation provided and cultural specificity.

The readability of the health information in the Mayo Clinic website is excellent. Concerning the poor literacy skills for older patients, the information should be presented in a simple nonprofessional language (Kotsenas et al.,2018). The older patient population is estimated at approximately 16% of those aged 60-65, and 58% are aged 85 years and above (Jacob et al., 2017).Besides, older patients are more likely to have cognitive challenges. The health information in Mayo Clinic website is written at a 6 to 8 school grade level. The low level ensures that the information can also be read and understood by older patients.

The health information on the website is of good quality. Patients face challenges finding good quality health information on some websites. Authentic and reliable sources, such as the Mayo Clinic provide quality information. The quality features include content’s purpose, disclosure of sponsors, accuracy, and reliability of the information, accessibility, readability and interactivity.Evaluating Website Part 1 Essay

References

Jacobs, W., Amuta, A. O., & Jeon, K. C. (2017). Health information seeking in the digital age: An analysis of health information seeking behavior among US adults. Cogent Social Sciences, 3(1), 1302785.

Kotsenas, A. L., Aase, L., Arce, M., Timimi, F. K., Dacy, M., Young, C., & Wald, J. T. (2018). The social media DNA of Mayo Clinic—and health care. Journal of the American College of Radiology, 15(1), 162-166. Evaluating Website Part 1 Essay