Accuracy of information on apparently credible websites: survey of five common health topics

Kunst, Heinke; Groot, Diederik; Latthe, Pallavi; Latthe, Manish; Khan, Khalid S.

doi:10.1136/bmj.324.7337.581

Cited by 216 publications

(143 citation statements)

References 4 publications

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“…3 Studies examining the reliability of information on the Internet directly have documented lack of currency and accuracy, even on well-reputed websites. 1,9 Despite these limitations, professionals and the lay public appear to be eager to cite the Internet as a valuable source of information.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Internet Use and Perceptions of Information Reliability by Parents in a Neonatal Intensive Care Unit

et al. 2003

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OBJECTIVES:To assess Internet use and perceptions of information reliability by parents in a neonatal intensive care unit (NICU). STUDY DESIGN:A standardized questionnaire study. RESULTS:A total of 100 parents were approached and 90% participated. In all, 79% owned a computer, 85.5% had Internet access, and 75.5% regularly spent >1 to 2 hour/day on the computer. There was a significant reduction in the proportion of parents using the Internet after birth of their baby (before birth: nonmedical searches 84% and medical searches 47%; after birth: nonmedical searches 40% and medical searches 29%; p<0.0001 and <0.03, respectively). Internet access was more likely in those with higher level of education (p ¼ 0.006) and fluency in reading English (p ¼ 0.05). In all, 80% considered the NICU doctors as a reliable source of medical information compared with 10% in the case of the Internet. CONCLUSIONS:Although a considerable proportion of parents use the Internet for medical information, many still view the information obtained as unreliable.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Internet Use and Perceptions of Information Reliability by Parents in a Neonatal Intensive Care Unit

et al. 2003

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“…These results justify an emphasis in this research field on the need to critically assess the credibility of the health information available [9,10]. Virtual communities should be expected to have greater credibility [11] hence they have a potential effect on the patients' behaviour.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…to reduce such errors and improve their treatment adherence [5,6]. The information on safe use of medicines provided by these virtual communities has begun to be studied [7], though that electronic word-of-mouth (eWOM) communication shares the problems of reliability and credibility found on analyzing health information websites [8,9].The aim of the present study was to determine whether virtual communities for patients set up by healthcare institutions, patients' associations and independent organizations provide information that facilitates safer use of medication. …”

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confidence: 99%

Patient Safety in Blogs and Wikis Entries by Patients and For Patients

2014

J Health Med Informat

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IntroductionInternet contributes to patients' independence and facilitates selfcare [1]. In Spain, according to recent data, up to 61% of patients turn to Internet to seek information on health-related issues [2]. A total of 53% stated that they changed their behaviour because of the information they found on the Web. E-patients go to Internet for various reasons, including: to find information about illnesses and disease, to share their experiences with other patients or with professionals, or to seek information about new/alternative therapies.The influence of virtual communities is on the increase, and patients are accessing such communities [3] (blogs, discussion groups of forums, news groups, wikis, etc.) more and more, with a view to exchanging information on how to deal with their illness on a day-today basis and to seeking advice about the correct use of medication and any precautions they should take. It is well known that patients are subject to errors (of omission and commission) with medication [4], and use a range of strategies (pillboxes, notes on medicine packaging, associating taking medicines with meals, etc.) to reduce such errors and improve their treatment adherence [5,6]. The information on safe use of medicines provided by these virtual communities has begun to be studied [7], though that electronic word-of-mouth (eWOM) communication shares the problems of reliability and credibility found on analyzing health information websites [8,9].The aim of the present study was to determine whether virtual communities for patients set up by healthcare institutions, patients' associations and independent organizations provide information that facilitates safer use of medication. Materials and MethodsObservational study in which the authors consulted websites with information about the safe use of those medicines most widely prescribed for the illnesses most prevalent in Spain. Three types of information providers were considered: first, websites housing independent virtual communities or networks for patients (IW); second, portals representing healthcare institutions or patients' associations and in which there is active participation from health professionals (HP); and third, pharmaceuticals industry websites (PI).The most prevalent illnesses or conditions were identified on the basis of morbidity data from the Spanish Health Survey for 2011/12, and were as follows: high blood pressure, COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease), asthma, diabetes, arthrosis, back pain, varicose AbstractBackground: Many patients changed their behaviour because of the Internet. The influence of virtual communities is on the increase.Objective: The aim of this study was to examine whether virtual communities for patients provide information that facilitates safer use of medication. Methods:Observational study of websites with information about the safe use of those medicines most widely prescribed for the illnesses most prevalent in Spain. Three types of information providers were considered: housing independent virt...

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“…De hecho, muchas iniciativas para evaluar fiabilidad y calidad de la información médica encontrada en la red están siendo llevadas a cabo actualmente en varios países. Se trata de un problema que preocupa a los gobiernos y a los colectivos de muchas otras problemáticas de salud (Stubbs 1999) (Kunst 2002). …”

Section: Editor Revista Especializada: "Existe El Efecto Que Yo Llamounclassified

HIV/AIDS in the Information Society

Cabrera¹

2003

IN3 work. pap. ser.

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Accuracy of information on apparently credible websites: survey of five common health topics

Cited by 216 publications

References 4 publications

Internet Use and Perceptions of Information Reliability by Parents in a Neonatal Intensive Care Unit

Internet Use and Perceptions of Information Reliability by Parents in a Neonatal Intensive Care Unit

Patient Safety in Blogs and Wikis Entries by Patients and For Patients

HIV/AIDS in the Information Society

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