Accessing Valid and Reliable Health Information

Definition: The ability to locate, understand, interpret, and make judgements about information, products, and services.
Core Objective: Navigating and evaluating health-related resources to distinguish accurate, trustworthy guidance from unverified claims.

Exemplar Health-Related Question: Does sunscreen cause cancer?
Search Engine Evaluation Scope: Assessment of search results, specifically focusing on the first five websites shown in search results.
Included Site Evaluations:
- Site 1 evaluation
- Site 2 evaluation

Accuracy: The factual correctness, truthfulness, and precision of the information.
Credibility: The trustworthiness, authority, and background credentials of the source, author, or publisher.
Current: The timeliness and recency of the information, ensuring it reflects current findings and research.
Ease of Use: The accessibility, readability, layout, and user-friendly navigation of the website.
Situations: The context, specific scenarios, or conditions under which the information, product, or service is applicable.
Support: The presence of underlying evidence, clinical documentation, citations, and backing references to substantiate claims.

Evaluation Objective: Determining whether health-related web sources are valid and reliable based on systematic criteria evaluation.