Be an informed patient

Be an Informed Patient: an Introduction to Health & Medical Resources Online Katrina Belogorsky April 21, 2011 Healin

Medical & Health Databases Skokie PL as of April 2011
General Medical Sites
ConsumerReportsHealth.org from EBSCO
Drug Facts & Comparisons
Medical Reference Books from Gale
MedlinePlus
Natural Standard
Salem Health

Consumereports health.org

Drug Facts and Comparison

Medical reference Books from Gale

Medical Reference Books from Gale

MedlinePlus
www.medlineplus.gov
MedlinePlus is the National Institutes of Health's Web site for patients and their families and friends.

Medlineplus

Clinical Trials also in Medlineplus

Salem Health

Doctor & Hospital What can and cannot be answered
YES
- General/biographical information.
- License Look ups
- Suspensions/lawsuits
NO
- Number of individual procedures performed
or types of patients seen.

Licence Look-ups & bios
Doctors are licensed by state. In Illinois
Department of Professional Regulations www.idfpr.com
- License number, original issue date, and the date of expiration are provided.
- If there is a “Y” under “Ever Disciplined?”
you’ll be able to click it for more information.

IDFPR
The IDFPR used to provide more information
(medical school attended, year of graduation, residency, etc.), but that information was removed due to a lawsuit.

Hospital’s websites
Most hospitals now provide physicians profiles on their websites. Usual info includes:
-A picture, age, some times brief bio
-Medical school, year of graduation, residency
-Board certification, areas of specialty
ABMS www.abms.org shows board certification.
Registration is required.

More! More!
A quick Google search may turn up membership in relevant professional organizations or even a C.V.
A quick Pubmed or some other article search will turn up any recent scholarly publications.

More Tools…
Angie’s list – user based reviews, not free
http://www.angieslist.com/
Insurance Companies Databases
-ex. United Healthcare https://www.geoaccess.com/uhc/po/Default.asp
Private Companies – Castle Connolly guides
www.acstleconnolly.com

More tools..
Big publications like Chicago Magazine & U.S. News and World Report.
- Rankings are not truly objective.
- They often buy their ranking data from organizations like Castle Connolly.

More tools…Healthgrades

Healthgrades Hospitals

Healthgrades Doctors

Healthgrades Malpractice

Physician Directories
American Board of Medical Specialties
American Dental Association (ADA) Member Directory
DoctorFinder from the American Medical Association
License Look-up from the Illinois Department of Professional Regulation
MedlinePlus Directories: General Doctors and Dentists

Doctor’s Finder

Procedures
Data does exist about specific procedures at the hospital level (billing, etc.) & with insurance companies, but it is proprietary & will not be able to access it.

Hospitals, HMOs, and Nursing Homes
American Hospital Directory
America's Best Hospitals from U.S. News & World Report
Hospital Compare (Department of Health &Human Services)
Nursing Home Compare (from Medicare.gov)
Nursing Homes in Illinois from the Illinois Department of Public Health

Drug Information
Drug Facts & Comparisons (SPL Database)
DrugDigest
Drugs, Supplements, and Herbal Information
(Part of MedlinePlus)
Drugs.com
Electronic Orange Book (FDA)
Natural Standard (SPL Database)

Buying drugs online

Buying Drugs Online
VIPPS Verified Internet Pharmacy Practice Sites
from the
National Association of Boards of Pharmacy NABP
http://www.nabp.net/

Articles from Professional Journals
Pubmed – pubmed.gov
PsycARTICLES

Kaiser Family Foundation www.kff.org
non-partisan source of facts, information, and analysis for policymakers, the media, the health care community
One of the best sources to understand Health Reform http://healthreform.kff.org/

HealthCare.gov
Find Insurance Options
Hospital Compare
Nursing Home Compare
Dialysis Compare
Understand the new Law
Health Care News

Illinois Pre-Existing Condition Insurance Plan (IPXP)
The Pre-Existing Condition Insurance Plan makes health insurance available to people who have had a problem getting insurance due to a pre-existing condition.
https://www.pcip.gov

Pre-Existing Condition Insurance Plan
The Pre-Existing Condition Insurance Plan: Covers a broad range of health benefits, including primary and specialty care, hospital care, and prescription drugs.
Doesn’t charge you a higher premium just because of your medical condition.
Doesn’t base eligibility on income.

Evaluating internet Health Information
Who runs the site?
Why have they created the site?
What do they want from you?
Who is paying for the site? Does the site’s information favor to sponsor?
What is the original source of the information?
How is the information on the Web site documented?

Evaluating Health Information
How does the Web site choose links to other sites?
How is information reviewed before it is posted on the Web site?
What information about its visitors does the Web site collect, and why?
National Library of Medicine Tutorial
http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/webeval/webeval.html

Evaluating Health Information
Remember
Information that you find on the Web site does not replace your doctor’s advice.
If you read something on the Web that doesn’t agree with what your doctor has told you, ask him or her about it.

Be an informed patient

by Skokie Public Library

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