Table 4.
Details of 10 healthcare websites that were assessed in this study
| Website | Intended purpose | Produced by | Targets clinicians? | Functionality | Accreditation | Links to.. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Map of Medicine[20] |
Provides care maps used to establish new services, manage referrals and communicate across care settings. |
Commercial, Hearst Business Media. |
Yes, for GPs and secondary health care. |
Homepage confusing but maps themselves easy to navigate. |
The Information Standard. |
AOHL, BTA, CKS, PAT. DH GPG. |
|
British Tinnitus Association[21] |
Provides support and information for people with tinnitus. |
Registered charity. |
Yes, dedicated section. |
Easy navigate, clearly marked, menu bar helpful. However lots of scrolling needed, and cannot use the ‘back’ button. |
The Information Standard. |
AOHL. |
|
GP Notebook[22] |
Provides encyclopaedic synopses focussed on the needs of GPs. |
Commercial Oxbridge Solutions Ltd. |
Yes, GPs. |
Easy use, reliable search function. Required the use of back button to get to additional areas from the first page. |
None |
BTA. DH GPG. |
|
eMedicine[23] |
To provide healthcare professionals with information to improve patient care and stay current in their practice. |
Commercial - WebMD Health Professional Network. |
Yes, general `healthcare. |
Overly burdened with text, with few subsections, heading or summaries, making it very laborious to find particular information. |
None |
None |
|
Clinical Knowledge Summaries[24] |
Aims to provide evidence-based information and practical ‘know how’ on conditions typically managed in primary care. |
Government – NHS. |
Yes, aimed at clinicians working in Primary and first contact care. |
Easy to navigate, logical drop-downs and lists. Can get to any required information in 2 – 3 drills. |
Approved by Plain English Campaign. |
None |
|
Mentor Online[25] |
Aims to provide evidence-based information for medical decision-making. |
Commercial - Egton Medical Information Systems Ltd (EMIS). |
Yes, medical practitioners. |
Well structured but requires practice to navigate. Useful shortcuts. |
None |
AoHL, BTA, CKS, GPN, NHS C, PAT. |
|
GP Online[26] |
Aims to provide GPs with news, clinical and management resources, focused CPD and educational materials. |
Commercial, Haymarket Business Media. |
Yes, GPs. |
Site is difficult to navigate, individual pages are very long, but related information not always on the same page and difficult to find. |
None |
AOHL, BTA, CKS, DH GPG. |
|
Action On Hearing Loss[27] |
Aims to support people with hearing loss or tinnitus, and promote hearing health. |
Registered charity. |
Yes, section for GPs. |
Easy to navigate but GP section is ‘buried’ in the ‘Supporting you’ section. Search function not useful as invariably directs you to forum pages. |
None |
BTA |
|
Patient.co.uk[28] |
Provides non-medical people with information about health and disease. |
Commercial - Egton Medical Information Systems Ltd (EMIS) |
Suggests health professionals may also find the site a useful resource. |
Clear layout, but too much information on main pages. Good use of sections and tabs. |
The Information Standard. HONcode standard for trustworthy health. |
AOHL, BTA, CKS, GPN, NHS C, EMED. |
| NHS Choices[29] | Aims to provide information on self care, from lifestyle decisions to practical aspects of using NHS services. | Government - NHS | Contains a section for healthcare professionals but not related to medical practice. | Easy to navigate but excessive text. Some very user friendly search features. | The Information Standard. | AOHL, BTA, CKS, MOM. |
AOHL Action on Hearing Loss, BTA British Tinnitus Association, CKS Clinical Knowledge Summaries, DH GPG Department of Health Good Practice Guide, EMED eMedicine, GPN GP Notebook, MOM Map of Medicine, NHS-C NHS Choices, PAT patient.co.uk.