I love and hate the internet. As you know, I am an active blogger, and I think (*hope*) my information is readable and informative. But there is a lot of bad or hard to understand information out there. (Yes there is “fake news” even in plastic surgery.)
This study looked at a simple topic- If I were a patient trying to get information about BOTOX® Cosmetic and Dermal Fillers, how understandable and accurate is the information out there?
Study:
- Google search for “Botox” and “filler”
- Looked at the most popular websites
- Sites were analyzed for readability and quality of information using DISCERN criteria and Health on the Net Foundation Code of Conduct. Website performance was also evaluated.
- 85 websites were analyzed
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- 13 academic/hospital
- 25 board certified private practice MDs
- 7 private practices NOT board certified
- 16 online health services
- 17 other
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Findings?
You had to have an education level of 11th grade or higher to understand the material.
- Quality scores were higher for online health reference websites than for academic, commercial, private practice sites
- There was no correlation between website rank and the quality score
They conclude with a call to improve the readability, quality, and technical aspects of websites for hospitals and doctors.
My thoughts?
You tell me! I write all my own content and try to dazzle you with my liberal arts education by translating all the medical fancy jargon into easy to understand terms. Send me feedback on what you think or how I could improve it. I truly believe in education. That is the whole purpose behind my blog and website.