Transcript Study of Legitimate vs. Invalid Research Web Resources

Study of Legitimate vs. Invalid
Research Web Resources
GEMP I PCMS Module 4
Healthy Web (Internet) Searching
•
•
•
•
•
•
Anyone Can and Does Publish
No Editing
No Peer Review
No Control
Can be Dangerous for Medical Information
Easy to Find Misinformation which Looks
Credible
Home Management of Fever in Children:
Web Sites
• 41 sites identified
• 2 contained dangerous information
• 1 recommended a drug that was removed
from the market
• Only 4 sites gave completely accurate
information
Impicciatore, P., et al. 1997. BMJ,
317:1875
How Peter Duesberg Misled the SA Health
Ministry
Duesberg.com: Links
32 Signatories, with a Further 14 Added in 1991
One of the Few Times You Can Use Google!!
Wikipedia. Available: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AIDS#Alternative_hypotheses.
[Updated 10.02.2007] [Accessed 12.02.2007]
How to Evaluate a Web Site
• Look for Evidence
– Author (not Webmaster)
– Publishing Authority
• Analyse URL (.gov, .edu)
– Date
– Frequency of Updates
– Bias
• Be careful of advertising and sponsored links
– Colour and Text
• Speling & Gramma
– Seals of Approval (SOAPS)
Health on the Net (HON)
• http://www.hon.ch
• Any Site that Carries this Seal of Approval can
be Trusted for Health Information
Quackwatch.org
Summary: How to Evaluate a Web Site
1. Accuracy
– Author/ Contact Address
2. Authority
– .edu .gov .org. net/ Preferred Domains
3. Objectivity
– Limited advertising; Little/no bias
4. Currency
– Up to date; Links up to date
5. Coverage
– Not dependent on specific browsers/software; not fee
based
•
http://copia.library.cornell.edu/olinuris/ref/webcrit.html
Why it’s Not a Good Idea to Google
Health Information …
LipoSafe
Sponsored Links on Google
Virtual Diet: YouTube
How to Airbrush Photos …
If you MUST Use Google …
Google Scholar