FINDING HEALTH INFORMATION FINDING HEALTH INFORMATION ON THE NETON THE NET

Vasumathi SriganeshQMed Knowledge Foundation

info@qmedkf.org.in

DO SHARE WITH US…

• How many of you do use the Internet to seek health information?

• What is your approach when you search?

TODAY’S TALK – FOUR PARTS

• Background / scope / importance of searching correctly

• Types of information resources

• Examples of very important resources

• Foundational principles of searching

PART I - BACKGROUND

• Context

• Right kinds of resources – the importance

• Searching – what is right and wrong

WHEN DO WE NEED HEALTH INFORMATION?

• “Health” related queries – “Are bananas good for our health”?

• “Condition” related queries – Pregnancy, Bringing up kids, Posture, Obesity…

• “Disease” related queries – Back pain, Diabetes, Cancer…

WE NEED TO

• Understand diseases / conditions

• Find professionals / institutions

• Make the right decision

BEFORE WE SEARCH

We need to know…

ABOUT RESOURCES

Authenticity

• Who is responsible for the resource / website?

Recency

• Is it updated regularly / is the information current?

Purpose

• Purpose of the resource / site - is there scope for bias?

Organization

• Organization of the resource / site – is it easy to find what you need

RESPONSIBILITY

Source: http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/webeval/webeval_start.html

EVALUATING…

“About Us”

• PABH: Doctors & Cardiologists; mission – to educate public; contact details provided

• IHH: “Select” group of individuals and businesses concerned with heart health. – Site supported by a company that produces vitamins

and other medications– Link for buying medicines– Contact details – only “webmaster”

SEARCHING FOR INFORMATION

OUR QUESTION

• Bananas for our health…. Good / Bad? – Do they make us put on weight?– Or do they *really* help us burn fat?

RESEARCH SHOWS THAT…..

SO…

• What do we believe?

• How many pages of search results do we go through?

USING INTERNET RESOURCES

It IS possible to use “the right methods” to search!

STEP BY STEP APPROACH

Learn:

• “About” resources

• How to search correctly and/or consult librarians / specialists

• How to understand research results and consult health professionals

• To….Accept limitations of research results and methods and make correct personal decisions

PART II - TYPES OF RESOURCES

ABOUT RESOURCES

Categorize them… and understand where to go

THREE CATEGORIES

Medical Information Resources – three main categories

• Background information / Factual information

• Results of all “reported research”– What works– What does not work– We don’t know yet

• Reported research– In labs– On people

• (Large studies)

WEBSITES

Can be

• Single type

• Combination types

Learn to identify what type of information each website provides!

PART III - EXAMPLES:VERY IMPORTANT RESOURCES

WEBSITES FOR BACKGROUND INFORMATION

MEDLINEPLUS.GOV

Authentic?Purpose?

Ease of organization?

Information about updates?

WEBSITES FOR RESULTS OF RESEARCH

Cochrane Summaries

PubMed Health

summaries.cochrane.org

summaries.cochrane.org

COCHRANE COLLABORATION

• Experts from different medical fields– Eg: “Pregnancy and childbirth group”

ALSO:

• Cochrane Consumer Network

http://consumers.cochrane.org/

ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmedhealth/

ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmedhealth/

PART IV: SEARCHING: FOUNDATIONAL PRINCIPLES

SEARCHING CORRECTLY

Research Articles

www.pubmed.gov

(Database of 20 million journal articles)

SEARCHING CORRECTLY

• Word search – presence of the word

• Field search – Where do you want your word to be?

• Combinations: AND, OR, NOT

TAKE HOME MESSAGE

• Searching is a structured art and science

• Know where to go– Authentic resources – updated regularly

• Search correctly

• Evidence may/may not exist

• Take your decision with your doctor, based on “best available evidence”

QMED KNOWLEDGE FOUNDATION

• Conducts programs on correct searching for health professionals

• Developing plans to help consumers, with the help of doctors

• People involved– Librarians specialized in medical information

management– Trustees – two doctors

REAL LIFE STORIES

• HELP – Doctor – son – rare condition

…my son had a rare disease- agenesis of corpus callosum. Your information helped me a lot. Taking the cue, I went to Boston to meet someone who ran a NGO on this disease. I still receive a newsletter from that group. Now my son works in _____All thanks to you. 

REAL LIFE STORIES

• Family friend – rare disease

….The entire credit of my miraculous recovery from a seemingly incurable disorder, goes to my visit to your place, when I came to know about pubmed!! I am trying my bit, to spread awareness about the cure …..

www.qmed.org.in

HOW WE CAN HELP YOU

• Fact sheet – now

• Searching for specific needs– “I am 37 and wish to have a baby now. How safe is it”– “My doctor has given a choice of two chemotherapy drugs for my

mother. How do I choose”

– Consulting sessions to help you • Search and discuss with your doctor – but NOT

• Medical advice – which your doctor will give you

QMED IS

• A not for profit Trust

• No government or agency funding

• We crowdsource funds and ask for donations for any professional help we provide

QMED KNOWLEDGE FOUNDATION

Helping patients & their caregivers to seek reliable information and participate responsibly in health care decisions