Health Online at Medline Plus

A SeniorNet Workshop

SeniorNet is a service program of the Lutheran Service Society of Western Pennsylvania

What are the top 5 uses of the Internet by seniors?*

Send & receive e-mail (93%)

Research hobbies (58%)

Get the news (55%)

Seek specific info on health & wellness (53%)

Check the weather 50%*Source: Pew Internet & American Life Project

What benefit does health education have for seniors?

“Health education is one of the factors that have decreased the number of senior citizens who are chronically disabled and require nursing-home care.”

Proceeding fo the National Academy of Science, 2003

Where can I go online for health education and information?

There are many sites

Check file extensions to understand who is sponsoring the site

One of the best is Medline Plus

What is Medline Plus?

Medline Plus is the official website of the National Library of Medicine and the National Institutes of Health.

Medline Plus consistently provides reliable and objective information about health care.

How do other websites qualify as links to Medline Plus? Medline Plus contains numerous links to

other websites providing health and medical information.

Medline Plus uses a strict set of criteria to determine is a website should be linked.

The criteria are found under Selection Guidelines on the homepage.

Where is Medline Plus located?

Medline Plus is located at:

www.medlineplus.gov

or

www.medlineplus.org

What will I find at Medline Plus?

Information

Instructions

Help and Advice

News

Links to other health-related sites

How should I use the information I find at Medline Plus?

The information you find on Medline Plus is intended for educational use only and is not intended to replace advice of a health care professional.

Please consult your physician before you make any changes to your health care plan.

How is Medline Plus Organized?

The Medline Plus homepage is organized into three major sections.

How is Medline Plus Organized?

Section #1 (homepage left) Health Topics Drug Information Medical Encyclopedia Dictionary News Directories Other Resources

How is Medline Plus organized?

Section #2 (homepage center) Current Health News Featured site In the Spotlight

How is Medline Plus organized?

Section #3 (homepage right) Interactive tutorials ClinicalTrials.gov NIH SeniorHealth E-mail subscription service Tour the site link

How do I search for health information on Medline Plus?

By linking to various sections then searching by alpha order, topic or subject and/or key word

Note: once you link off the homepage, all major sections are displayed as tabs at the top of each page

By using the website’s search engine

Can you give me an example? YES! Let’s look for information on health care

issues of interest by linking to Section #1.

Health topics (search by alpha or topic) Drug Information (search by alpha) Medical Encyclopedia (search by alpha) Dictionary (by key word) News (search by topic or subject) Directories (search by provider type) Other resources (search by topic)

How do I use the website’s search engine? On the homepage, type in the key words for

your search subject into the Search MedlinePlus text box.

Select Search Medline Plus button to the right of the text box or select the Enter key

Search results will be displayed

What will I find in Section #2?

Current news

Featured site

In the spotlight

What will I find in Current News?

Links to current health-related news stories

Stories change often

Stories come from various sources

Note “Printer friendly” & “E-mail to a friend” options

Note links to other related stories & Medline Plus pages

What will I find at Featured Site? Information on a special topic. Changes periodically. May be related to a current health issue or a

seasonal concern. Allergies in spring Sun-burns in August Frost-bite during February, etc.

What’s “In the Spotlight?”

Similar to the featured site. Provides focused information about one

current health issue or concern. Changes frequently

What will I find in Section #3?

Interactive tutorials ClinicalTrials.gov NIH SeniorHealth E-mail subscription service Site tour

What’s an Interactive Tutorial? Movie-like presentation of a health topic with

animated graphics & audio. Choose from 165 topics. Interactive tutorials require special software

(Flash plug-in, version 6.0 or higher). You will be prompted to download if needed.

Can you run an example of an interactive tutorial? Click on Interactive tutorial Select Lyme Disease. To begin, click on Go to Module and Start Module. Use the green arrows to advance forward and

backward. Click on Mute Sound to eliminate the sound – this

will speed-up the presentation. Use the blue links on the left to skip to a

different section.

What is Clinical Trials.gov?

The section of Medline Plus called ClinicalTrials.gov provides information about federally and privately supported clinical research using human volunteers.

ClinicalTrials.gov gives you information about a trial's purpose, who may participate, locations, and phone numbers for more details.

Why would I want to participate in a clinical trial?

Altruistic - to advance our knowledge and understanding of wellness & disease.

Personal - to get access to treatments and procedures that are not currently approved for use in the general population.

What will I find at NIH SeniorHealth? This link takes you directly to a website developed

exclusively for older adults by the National Institute on Aging, the National Library of Medicine and the National Institutes of Health.

Select Click to Begin to access the site.

Accessibility features including enlarged text, high contrast and audio are available.

What is the e-mail service offered by Medline Plus?

Medline Plus offers a subscriber e-mail service on the link Sign-up now!

Subscribers receive e-mail information from Medline Plus tailored to meet their personal needs and interests.

What is the site tour?

An animated tour of the site

Lasts about 8 minutes

Requires Flash plug-in Version 6.0 or higher

You will be prompted to download Flash plug-in if necessary

How can I get more information about Medline Plus website? Try the FAQs link at the top right of the Medlineplus

homepage.

This is a list of the most frequently asked questions about this site.

Questions are listed by topic. Technical questions Using Medline Plus General Questions, etc.