Health Information
Millions of consumers get health information from magazines, TV or the internet. Unfortunately, sometimes it’s not easy to separate the good from the bad, the accurate from the biased, the research from the ads. You want to make sure you are finding the most current, unbiased information that is based on research.
Unfortunately, while the growing popularity of the Internet has made it easier and faster to find health information, it also allows fast and widespread distribution of false and misleading information. That’s according to the National Institutes of Health (NIH), which is charged with enforcing consumer protection laws.
Before searching for medical information on the internet, we recommend that you educate yourself about how to evaluate the information you find. Here are several resources that can help:
- Evaluating Health Information on the Internet – A brief Q&A fact sheet developed by The National Institute of Health
- Evaluating Internet Health Information – A tutorial from the National Library of Medicine
- Health on the Web: Finding Reliable Information – A guide, also available in Spanish, from the American Academy of Family Physicians
- MedlinePlus Guide to Healthy Web Surfing – A guide from the National Library of Medicine
Finally, never forget that it is vital – after carefully considering the source of the information – to discuss it, along with your medical history and any symptoms, with your health care provider.
Here are links to a few of the websites from national non-profit organizations and the government that you may find useful. Remember that clicking on any of these links will take you to the website for a different organization, not related to this hospital.
American Heart Association – www.Heart.org
American Cancer Society – www.Cancer.org
American Diabetes Association – www.Diabetes.org
Centers for Disease Control – www.CDC.gov
Childhood Obesity – www.LetsMove.gov
Emergencies – http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/emergencymedicalservices.html
A site from the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services with interactive tools, including risk assessments and health trackers: HealthFinder.gov
Men’s Health – www.MensHealthNetwork.org
Mental and Behavioral Health – www.nmha.org
National Kidney Foundation – www.Kidney.org
National Stroke Association – www.Stroke.org
Senior Health – www.NIHSeniorHealth.gov
Sleep Disorders – www.SleepFoundation.org
Women’s Health – www.WomensHealth.gov
Health Reform
On March 23, 2010, the Patient Protection and Affordability Act, was signed into law. This comprehensive health reform legislation is designed to expand coverage, control health care costs, and improve the health care delivery system. There is a lot of confusion surrounding the new laws, but there are a number of websites and other resources that provide excellent information for the public, including these:
- Kaiser Family Foundation at www.kff.org – A leader in health policy and communications, the Kaiser Family Foundation is a non-profit, private operating foundation that serves as a non-partisan source of facts, information, and analysis for policymakers, the media, the health care community, and the public. They provide information free of charge — from the most sophisticated policy research, to basic facts and numbers, to information young people can use to improve their health or seniors can use to understand their Medicare benefits.
- www.Healthcare.gov – There are sections on this website that explain how the Affordable Care Act will impact different populations, including seniors, early retirees, rural Americans, veterans and military personnel, Americans with Disabilities and more. There’s also a section that lists immediate benefits of the new law.
- www.Medicare.gov – This is the official U.S. Government site, providing a wealth of information for Medicare beneficiaries.