Preferred Sources of Health Information in Persons With Multiple Sclerosis: Degree of Trust and Information Sought
by Ruth Ann Marrie, Amber R Salter, Tuula Tyry, Robert J Fox, Gary R Cutter
(Published on 30 Apr 2013)
Background: Effective health communication is important for informed decision-making, yet little is known about the range of information sources used by persons with multiple sclerosis (MS), the perceived trust in those information sources, or how this might vary according to patient characteristics. Objective: We aimed to investigate the sources of health information used by persons with MS, their preferences for the source of health information, and levels of trust in those information sources. We also aimed to evaluate how these findings varied according to participant characteristics. Methods: In 2011, participants in the North American Research Committee on Multiple Sclerosis (NARCOMS) Registry were asked about their sources of health information using selected questions adapted...
Examining the Differences in Format and Characteristics of Zoonotic Virus Surveillance Data on State Agency Websites
by Matthew Scotch, Brittany Baarson, Rachel Beard, Robert Lauder, Aarthi Varman, Rolf U. Halden
(Published on 29 Apr 2013)
Background: Zoonotic viruses are infectious organisms transmittable between animals and humans. Agencies of public health, agriculture, and wildlife conduct surveillance of zoonotic viruses and often report data on their websites. However, the format and characteristics of these data are not known. Objective: To describe and compare the format and characteristics of statistics of zoonotic viruses on state public health, agriculture, and wildlife agency websites. Methods: For each state, we considered the websites of that state’s public health, agriculture, and wildlife agency. For each website, we noted the presence of any statistics for zoonotic viruses from 2000-2012. We analyzed the data using numerous categories including type of statistic, temporal and geographic level of...