215186 Comparison of the readability of consumer health information on the internet

Tuesday, November 9, 2010 : 1:00 PM - 1:15 PM

Zara Risoldi Cochrane, PharmD , Center for Drug Information & Evidence Based Practice, Creighton University School of Pharmacy and Health Professions, Omaha, NE
Philip Gregory, PharmD , Center for Drug Information & Evidence Based Practice, Creighton University School of Pharmacy and Health Professions, Omaha, NE
Amy Wilson, PharmD , Center for Drug Information & Evidence Based Practice, Creighton University School of Pharmacy and Health Professions, Omaha, NE
Objectives: The purpose of this study was to compare the readability of internet health information intended for consumers found on government-funded websites (e.g. sites with a “.gov” suffix) versus that found on commercially-funded websites (e.g. sites with a “.com” suffix). Methods: Consumer health websites were identified through a systematic internet search. Webpages for ten common health topics were extracted from each website. Readability of webpages was determined by three validated measures: Flesch Reading Ease, Flesch-Kincaid Reading Level, and SMOG Formula. Mean readability of government-funded and commercially-funded websites was compared using the Mann-Whitney U test. Results: Commercially-funded websites were significantly more difficult to read as measured by Flesch Reading Ease (49.7 vs. 55.6 for government-funded sites, p=0.002) and Flesch-Kincaid Reading Level (10.1 vs. 9.3, p=0.012). There was no significant difference according to SMOG Grading (12.8 vs. 13.2, p=0.150). Conclusions: Commercially-funded websites, on average, were more difficult to read than government-funded websites. However, the overall readability of internet health information intended for consumers was poor. Efforts should be made to ensure that health information posted on the internet is easy for consumers to read and understand.

Learning Areas:
Communication and informatics
Planning of health education strategies, interventions, and programs

Learning Objectives:
Identify tools for estimating the readability of written information published on the internet. Define appropriate levels of readability for consumer health information published on the internet.

Keywords: Health Literacy, Health Communications

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: I specialize in the provision of health information to healthcare professionals and consumers.
Any relevant financial relationships? No

I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines, and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed in my presentation.