Health Information via the internet

Providing the public with online advice about health screening tests is a challenge because they are often a coarse filter rather than an accurate predictor. Several design issues arise relating to the ways that online information can help. This paper discusses such issues in the light of weblog data from 82 older men who in their own homes used a website giving information about the PSA test for prostate cancer. There was wide variation in how people interacted with the site. Many men were highly selective in the text pages they accessed, and five subsets of readers were identified. Animated graphics were viewed more often than video clips, but content rather than genre seemed to be the determining factor — i.e., people did not view graphics just because they were there. Little use was made of a memory aid to assist decision making, although it was more often used by those who read widely within the site. In contrast, the spoken commentary was retained by almost everyone. Overall, these data suggest that health information websites need to cater for diversity rather than designing for a fictitious ‘average’ user.