[Online communication regarding health promotion and protection: the public health perspective]

Currently web health portals are moving away from providing institutional and administrative types of information towards a more interactive type of communication focused on providing citizens and health care professionals various services associated with health promotion and on facilitating access to healthcare services. The aim of this study was to provide guidance in the planning and conduction of online health promotion and protection communication activities that will contribute to the process of community empowerment repeatedly called upon by the WHO. For this purpose, the authors conducted an analysis of the epidemiology of the determinants of health and disease in Italy as well as two systematic revisions of the literature regarding web-based health information needs of citizens and the efficacy of health promotion and preventative interventions administered via the internet. Although current scientific evidence suggests that some interventions (e.g. expert systems or tailored interventions) are more effective with respect to others (e.g. online support groups or other types of interventions), common sense suggests that public health computer platforms such as the " citizens' channel" of the Ministry of Health web portal should implement hybrid models, i.e. models that contain various types of interventions, and should provide access to both general information and to interactive and personalized programs.