E-health and assurance: curing hospital websites

Hospital websites are becoming an industry standard as patients (consumers) and health professionals use web resources for information, research, and communication. Industry predictions focused on future e-hospitals that would integrate all stakeholders in a seamless network allowing data to be shared. This paper investigates web assurance strategies implemented by hospitals in the design of their websites. The protection of critical infrastructure and information is crucial to the success of the web assurance strategy. The study reviewed a sample of 100 premier hospital websites. Results show little progress in the goal of making the website a fully functional unit of the hospital. Current sites are limited in scope and have become more selective in their provision of information in light of new HIPAA regulations.