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Evaluating pharmacy benefit management information on the Internet: purpose, structure, technology, and content
1University of California, Berkeley, USA. lucyck@uclink4.berkeley.edu
Managed Care Interface
|June 2, 2001
Summary
Evaluating online health information is crucial. This study found that users can assess internet health content based on purpose, structure, technology, and content, though further criteria development is needed.
Area of Science:
- Health Informatics
- Internet Studies
- Information Science
Background:
- The internet offers vast health information, but quality evaluation methods are lacking.
- Assessing the reliability of online health resources is essential for informed decision-making.
Purpose of the Study:
- To explore methods for evaluating the quality and content of internet health information.
- To analyze the websites of pharmacy benefit management firms for health information quality.
Main Methods:
- An exploratory analysis of 71 pharmacy benefit management (PBM) firm websites operational in late 1999.
- Utilized components of existing evaluation tools, incorporating variables for interactive marketing, technology features, and content.
Main Results:
- Internet health information can be evaluated by users across key dimensions.
- Identified purpose, structure, technology, and content as critical evaluation criteria for online health information.
Conclusions:
- Users can and should evaluate online health information.
- Further research is necessary to develop and validate comprehensive evaluation criteria for internet health content.