For those of you who are either in the healthcare business or provide services to those types of companies, a few considerations that go into designing a healthcare related website. Because "healthcare" covers such a wide spectrum, eliminate from this short study those sites that are established purely to sell a specific product. It is also nearly impossible to cover all of the points that need to be addressed, both because there are so many, and because each website is unique. Here are some of the more important features, and some tips on keeping your internet healthcare ventures well and healthy.
Privacy, Privacy and Privacy
People who search the internet for medical information say privacy is among their biggest concerns. Most internet health information sites have privacy policies; many just do not follow them. Done right, individuals should have the right to choose whether to allow personal information to be collected, to know what type of information is being gathered and to know how that information is used. Additionally, individual users should not have personally identifiable medical information disclosed to others without that individualÕs expressly informed consent. Some examples of good privacy policies:
We only use information collected on this website for our purposes,
and do not distribute this information to third parties.
We deploy technology to protect the information you send us.
Cookies are used to keep track of information to allow better user
experience. However, we keep this information strictly confidential.
Medical Advice
While many healthcare websites do have information exchange pages, message posting pages, and discussion groups for individuals sharing similar medical conditions, most of these sites do not give specific medical advice. In this case, it is just a good legal and business practice to cover that point. Here is an example of appropriate wording:
The information posted on this website by us or by any third party should not be considered medical advice, and is not intended to replace consultation with a qualified medical professional. We do not answer specific medical questions or refer people to a particular
professional. Reliance on any information on this website is at your
own risk.
Advertisements and Endorsements
Healthcare websites frequently contain advertising. There is nothing wrong with this, but there are a couple of points to consider. First, it should be clear that advertising is advertising, and not editorial content. If the distinction is unclear, then some notation about the advertising should probably be added. Second, unless the advertising is that of the website sponsor, there should be a disclaimer of endorsement of the advertising by the website host. Here is a suggested phrase:
Reference to any product, service, hypertext link to a third party or other information by trade name, trademark, supplier or otherwise does not constitute or imply its endorsement, sponsorship or recommendation by
the website host.
Third Party Content
Generally speaking, much of a healthcare website is composed of content provided by third parties. Scholarly articles, scientific reports, survey results, studies and personal anecdotes are all regularly featured, perfectly acceptable and in most cases absolutely necessary. However, it is a good idea for the website sponsor to note that this content is provided by third parties and the opinions, etc. involved in each are those of the provider or author, and are not necessarily those of the website sponsor. Here is a pretty inclusive example of how this can be conveyed, where "sponsor" is an "insert your company name here, " type of a thing:
Sponsor is a distributor of content supplied by third parties. Any
opinions, advice, statements, services, offers or other information or content made available by third parties are those of the respective author(s), and Sponsor is not responsible for any material posted by third parties. Sponsor cannot and does not endorse in any way, nor does it vouch for, the accuracy or usefulness of such material. Furthermore, Sponsor, expressly disclaims any liability associated with material posted by third parties.
Terms of Use
Healthcare websites should have a Terms of Use page. This is the place where a gaggle of other information can be covered. Points on this page include notices covering copyrights and trademarks, governing law and jurisdiction, registration and passwords, licenses, downloading provisions, links, warranty limitations, use restrictions and similar matters. In a more poetic form:
Too many websites are mostly all schlock
Where the content is truly a crock
So if you are ill, Beware of that swill
Be smart and go see the doc
© May, 2003 Jon Lee Andersen All Rights Reserved
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