Nursing program: Research skills: Finding Websites
Nursing-related Web sites
Nursing-Related Websites
- American Nurses Association (ANA)Provides news and policy statements about issues of concern to the nursing profession.
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)Part of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Reliable information and statistics about diseases and healthy living. Tip: Either type in keywords in the Search bar at the top, or browse the "Healthy Living" section and drop-down menu across the top.
- Cochrane ReviewsEvidence-based medical studies are indexed here. Unfortunately TCC can’t afford a subscription to the full text; fortunately a lot of good, free information can be gleaned at this site. Users can register to purchase 24-hour access to individual reviews.
- HealthfinderSearchable consumer health and information and services information from the National Health Information Center, US Department of Health and Human Services.
- HEALWAA portal for healthcare providers. Some resources are free, but most require a membership which is limited to members of selected groups of health care professionals (including RNs!) who are licensed to practice in Washington State.
- Joanna Briggs InstituteA unique suite of information resources to help integrate evidence into your practice. Includes publications such as best practice information sheets, evidence summaries, and systematic reviews.
- MedlinePlusThe National Institutes of Health's Web site for patients and their families and friends. Produced by the National Library of Medicine, it provides information about diseases, conditions, and wellness issues in layman's language.
- National Guideline ClearinghouseA database of evidence-based clinical practice guidelines and related documents from the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. See the box to the right for a brief video tutorial on searching the National Guideline Clearinghouse.
- National Institutes of HealthThe NIH is "the nation's research agency". Type the condition or disease in the search box in the top right corner.
- WebMDA commercial site with some basic health information overseen by a “medical review board.” Includes lists of healthcare providers. The quality of information is inconsistent, there may be bias in favor or site sponsors and advertisements abound. Your instructor may not be happy that is is a .com instead of a .gov or .org. However, aggressive marketing of the site assures that your patients will know about this—you should too!
Career & Employment Information
- Health Career CenterSponsored by the American Hospital Association, the Health Career Center to connects healthcare employers and top talent in all disciplines through its online job board network.
- American Nurses Association (ANA): Career CenterCareer information from the American Nurses Association
To find other authoritative sites
Finding Authoritative Websites with Google
To find other authoritative sites that might include information to support your topic, use Google (or another search engine) and try the following search:
- For example: “wound care” AND association
- For example: “wound care” AND association
- “nursing specialty” AND (association OR organization)
- For example: “rehabilitation nursing” AND (association OR organization)
- For example: “rehabilitation nursing” AND (association OR organization)
Check sections of the sites with labels such as: resources, guidelines, research, publications. Many sites contain both free and fee-based information. If the association publishes a journal, you can check the TCC Periodicals List to determine whether you have free access.
Web sites
Websites
You need to be extra cautious about information found on the World Wide Web.
Why? Because both individuals and groups can create websites and write about anything they choose--whether or not they have the education, training, or experience to make them experts.
For all of its "untamed" nature the World Wide Web contains a great deal of reliable, authoritative information.
These pages are dedicated to helping you find that information.
Evaluating Web sites
Evaluating Websites
Things to ask yourself when evaluating a website:
- Is the author of the website clearly identified? (an author could be an organization, such as the National Institutes of Health)
- Is there an "About" link clearly describing the author's credentials and purpose for creating the website?
- What is the domain (.com; .org; .gov; .edu)? Generally, .com are commercial sites dedicated in some way to making money. Only governments and schools can have .gov and .edu domains. Generally non-profit organizations use .org but anyone can use the .org domain, so use care.
- When was the information last updated?
- Is the language professional and neutral? Or, is there biased or accusational language?
- Who is the intended audience? Is this meant for professionals or more useful as a patient education source?
- Does the author use poor spelling and grammar? Are there exclamation points(!)? None of these are present in reliable and authoritative websites.
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