Website Evaluation Mayoclinic Essay Example

to show where the information came from. Although the authors are not on the individual articles the authors are individually listed with their qualifications on the website. The Mayo Clinic also has a correction policy to ensure accuracy of the information on the website they will change confusing, misleading information to make it accurate. Scheduled update for original content happen every two years but all information is updates as soon as possible if they identify significant changes or advanced (MayoClinic, 2011). Credibility

The Mayo Clinic has many accreditation and awards. Mayo Clinic complies with the HONcode standard for trustworthy health information. Health on the Net Foundation (HON) promotes and guides the deployment of useful and reliable online health information, and its appropriate and efficient use (HONcode). They also support the Consumer Reports WebWatch guidelines to promote credible information practices on the web (MayoClinic, 2011). Appearance and Usability

Mayo Clinic is very user friendly. The home page is set up to where you can find the subject you are looking for such as disease, symptoms, drugs, test, and healthy living. After clicking on of the following you can then search by the first letter of what you are trying to find and the website will come up with a list. The homepage also has a link to the symptom checker so you can see symptoms and causes for the certain symptoms. The website home page has a convenient search bar where you search for terms as well rather than looking them up. The interface is very easy to use and navigate through the articles as well. The articles are separated out into different sections so you don’t have

to read the whole thing if you just want to know something specific such as when to see a doctor or relief measures. Currency

The Mayo Clinic focuses on timeliness they strive to offer context and perspective on current events but do not compete to be the first and focus more on depth and perspective. On the homepage they have a section for new and updated information so you can get the current information that is available. The website is kept up-to-date by the medical experts and the web team and contains current links to websites and resources. Financial Cost

Access to Mayo Clinic is free to the public. The web page does contain advertisements on one side of the page, these advertisements and sponsorships are allowed under strict guidelines. The Mayo Clinic refuses to put any advertisements on their page that are incompatible with their mission to empower the people to take care of their health (MayoClinic, 2011). The Mayo clinic doesn’t support or endorse any of the ads on their page and maintains a distinct separation between advertisements and editorial content. Conclusion

Overall Mayo Clinic is a very useful and efficient website to use for both consumers and professionals for information on health. The website is highly accurate and credible. The web page is easy enough to use and navigate that it wouldn’t take much knowledge of computers to be able to find and use the information on the pages. The site is kept current my medical experts and is very up-to-date. The only problem that I had with the site is that the articles don’t have to original authors on them. If the site had

the original authors and the name of who was doing the editing if it was done then it would be more credible. I like to know where my information comes from which the site does by citing their outside sources. I would recommend this site to patients, friends and family it is a good way to become educated on common health problems, medications, first aid and healthy living.

References

http://www.hon.ch/HONcode/Conduct.html

http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/AboutThisSite/AM00002

http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/advertising-information/AM00038

http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/AboutThisSite/AM00004