Comparison of Two Medical Sites - Essay Example

Website Evaluations When trying to get information about a particular health-related issue, it is important to make sure that you use a reliable source. There are plenty of websites out there attempting to offer helpful information to people desperately in need of answers. However, there are also plenty of websites out there hoping to make a profit from those who are desperately in need of answers. All of these websites make an effort to present their material as if they are credible, reputable sources of information. The sites actually dedicated to health alone are interested in actually being credible and providing accurate and up-to-date information. The sites that are trying to sell something may also wish to provide credible, helpful information, but their primary goal remains to try to sell something to their visitor. Because this has become a science in advertising, it is sometimes difficult to tell the difference between these two types of sources. This is the case when comparing informational sites about irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), an illness that affects a great number of people and yet is not often discussed because of its embarrassing nature. Two sites that focus on the subject of irritable bowel disease are Help for IBS (http://www.helpforibs.com/diet/), a commercial site offered by an individual named Heather Van Vorous, and Medline Plus Irritable Bowel Syndrome (http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/irritablebowelsyndrome.html), a site managed and operated by the U.S. National Library of Medicine. Both of these sites are dedicated to providing information for people who are or might be suffering from IBS or who just want to know more about this illness. Both sites provide basic information about what the disease is and what other diseases might be confused with it or manifest the same symptoms. As a result of these possibilities, both sites emphasize the importance of the individual visiting a doctor and getting a clear diagnosis. Both sites also offer information about possible treatments for the illness but with a profound difference in approach. While the Medline site offers information about traditional medical treatment options for this condition as well as links to further information about common alternative therapies and nutritional concerns, the Help for IBS site is more focused, introducing the viewer to the products and plans that have worked for the site owner and, incidentally, distributor of many of these products. While the Help for IBS remains focused on the limited treatment options that the owner has used or can profit from, the Medline site goes much further into the illness, providing links to current research findings, references and specific information based on age and gender of the patient. Looking through the information provided on the websites it seems clear that the Medline site is primarily interested in providing information to the patient or friend/family of a patient while the Help for IBS site is more interested in promoting the products sold through its site. This is clear not only in the differences between the two owners of the sites – a national non-profit-making research organization operated by the government and an individual citizen – but also in the approach of the two sites. The Medline site makes an attempt to provide a number of external links to research, several types of treatment options and other forms of information regarding the illness. Although operated by the government and thus may be slanted based upon political or lobbyist interest, there is enough information available that the individual can trace the sources of information included and conduct further research of their own. It is true that an individual citizen may be more non-biased and informative thanks to diligent research than a governmental entity, but this possibility is called into question in this case as each page of the Help for IBS site features an offer from the site’s related store and all unpaid information provided leads the visitor to the conclusion that a product must be purchased before anything further will be learned. To learn more about the disease, for instance, broad information is given, a reminder to visit the doctor for accurate diagnosis is mentioned and then the visitor is directed to a number of books for sale in the linked online store that will answer all questions. This difference in interest behind the creation of the website presence reflects a profound difference in the people to whom the message is directed. The Medline site is directed to the patient/family member while the Help for IBS site is directed to the consumer by making a claim of sympathy through shared experience. The different approach between these two websites is also reflected in the credibility they convey. The information of both sites may be equally accurate as much of what they have to say regarding the definition of the illness and some of the information about treatment options is highly similar. However, there is a distinct difference in the quality of the information available on the two sites. The Medline site offers a great deal of information about the illness from every angle likely to be of concern to the visitor and provides a number of links so that the visitor can see where this information came from first-hand. The Help for IBS site simply gives information with little information provided to indicate where this information comes from or any links to be able to discover it for oneself. As has been mentioned, the information on the Help for IBS site is also called into question because of the way in which all of the information provided points to the necessity for the visitor to make an online purchase through the connected store. The visual presentation of both sites is relatively user-friendly and inviting in very different ways. The Help for IBS site is very warm and comforting. It has a light beige background that is easier on the eyes than the standard white background of the Medline site and it features predominantly black and yellow designs to frame the edges, making the site seem friendly and neighborly. Although Medline uses a harsher white background, this provides it with a more professional presentation. This white is tempered as well by the color-coded blocks of text links that lead to more information about the condition and by the friendly purple color of the many other links available on this page. In the end, it is only possible to believe the information available on the Medline page. The Help for IBS page contains similar information, but this is only believed when it is compared to the information on the Medline site. Too much of the content on this site is targeted to sales for it to retain any credence and it is uncomfortable to have the site owner, an individual with no professional title or credentials, criticize and contradict the information provided by medical doctors. However, the Medline site, which presents itself to me from the beginning as a highly professional, no-nonsense site, gives me access to all the same information the Help for IBS site gave me plus so much more. It tells me about the alternative treatments as well as the current medical approach. At no point does it attempt to sell me anything or pressure me into accepting a particular viewpoint or treatment approach to the exclusion of others. When specific information is stated, there is usually a citation or a link in place to let me know where the information came from and so that I can find the original source and see for myself what the context of the statement was. Because I can easily verify the information sources, I believe the Medline Plus page quickly and easily but just as quickly doubt the Help for IBS site. Read More