Skin cancer prevention educational resources: Just a click away? Journal Article


Authors: Forsea, A. M.; Kovalyshyn, I.; Dusza, S. W.; Halpern, A. C.
Article Title: Skin cancer prevention educational resources: Just a click away?
Abstract: Background The general public and health professionals are increasingly choosing the Internet to access skin cancer prevention information. ObjectiveS To identify the optimal mechanism for finding skin cancer educational resources through the Internet and to characterize the resources currently available on-line. Methods A survey of experts involved in skin cancer prevention, followed by standardized searches through popular general Internet search engines using a list of 10 terms relevant to skin cancer prevention resources. Results Internet search was the preferred modality for identifying skin cancer educational resources of all survey participants. The five most-trusted Internet sites identified by the survey participants ranked within the top 10 most findable web sites using general search engines. Ninety-six of 1,000 web pages retrieved using general web-search engines provided information regarding specific skin cancer prevention resources. Seven databases were identified that catalogued educational resources from multiple sources. Peer-reviewed analysis of the outcomes associated with the educational resources was available for only four of 489 resources identified (2.7%). Conclusions Information on skin cancer educational resources available on the Internet is abundant but redundant, and direct access to these resources remains difficult. No sites were identified that comprehensively catalogued and characterized the resources available from the leading providers. © 2010 by the American Society for Dermatologic Surgery, Inc.
Keywords: cancer prevention; skin neoplasms; skin cancer; internet; health survey; data base; questionnaires; peer review; medical literature; medical information system; health education; online system; search engine
Journal Title: Dermatologic Surgery
Volume: 36
Issue: 12
ISSN: 1076-0512
Publisher: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins  
Date Published: 2010-12-01
Start Page: 1962
End Page: 1967
Language: English
DOI: 10.1111/j.1524-4725.2010.01761.x
PUBMED: 21040125
PROVIDER: scopus
DOI/URL:
Notes: --- - "Export Date: 20 April 2011" - "CODEN: DESUF" - "Source: Scopus"
Altmetric
Citation Impact
BMJ Impact Analytics
MSK Authors
  1. Allan C Halpern
    396 Halpern
  2. Stephen Dusza
    288 Dusza