Helen L. DeRoy Medical Library: Web Site Evaluation Guide

• Look for web sites written by a person, institution, or organization which you already trust.
  
• Government Agencies, academic or medical institution and scientific journals or books are generally good places to start.
  
• If possible, get information from more than one source so that you get several different points of view to help you make the decisions that affect your medical care.
  
• Look for a clearly stated purpose, author or editorial board and source of funding on the web site.  Who wrote the site, what are they trying to do, and how is this being paid for?
  
• For example, the makers of Tylenol™ have much to gain by promoting its product over Advil™.  The information may be correct, but you may have to visit other sites to get the entire picture.
  
• If there is advertising on the site, it should be clearly set apart from the information.
  
• To ensure you are looking at current information, look for dates on a web site that shows when the site was first placed on the Internet, and when the page was last reviewed or revised.
  
• Medical facts and figures should have references, and sources of facts should be clearly listed.
  
• Opinions and advice should be clearly set apart from information that is “evidence-based” (that is, based on research).
  
• Look for a privacy statement.  If a site asks you to register, do they tell you what they will and won’t do with that information?

Web Sites

For more information on evaluating web sites, visit the following web pages:

Center for Health Information Quality
Discern
Michigan E-Library

The following web sites are good places to start when looking for medical information:

MEDLINEplus
American Academy of Family Physicians  
American Academy of Pediatrics
American Medical Association
CancerNet
Clinical Trials
Health Web
MEL Health Information Resources  
NOAH 

What is the purpose of the site?

          Is there an “About this Site” link?

          Is the individual or group promoting
                a particular   point of view?

          Who is the intended audience?

___ Yes

___ Yes

___ Yes

___ No

___ No


___ No

What type of site is it?

___ Advocacy

___Business/Marketing

___News

___Informational/
       Educational

___ Personal

Authority

          Is it clear who wrote the content for
              the site?

          What are the author’s
               qualifications?

          Can they be verified?

          Is contact information provided?

___ Yes

___ Yes

___ Yes

___ Yes

___ No

___ No

___ No

Responsibility

          Is the source of funding for the web
               site clearly stated or readily
              apparent?

          Is the site managed and reviewed
                by an  editorial board?

          If there is advertising, is it clear
               what is advertising and what is
                 content?

___ Yes

___ Yes

___ Yes

___ No

___ No

___ No

Accuracy of the information

          Do the medical facts and figures
                have references?

          Are sources clearly listed on the
               site?

          Are opinions and advice clearly set
              apart?

___ Yes

___ Yes

___ Yes

___ No

___ No

___ No

Is the information up to date?

          Are there dates on the site to
             indicate:

                When the page was written?

                When the page was last
                    reviewed / revised?

                A copyright date?

               Are there broken links?

___ Yes

___ Yes

___ Yes

___ Yes

___ No

___ No

___ No

___ No

Breadth and depth of coverage

          Is the information in depth?

___ Yes

___ No

Privacy Statement

          Does the site ask you for any 
                 personal information or require
                you to register?

          If so, does the site indicate what
                they will and will not do with
                the information?

          Do they have a privacy statement

___ Yes

___ Yes

___ Yes

___ No

___ No

___ No