Health On the Net Foundation - HONinfo 1/2000
************* HONselect: A Swiss-style smorgasbord?
Gathering information is time-consuming even when you know
exactly where to go for it. Until recently, medical Internet users had
to slog through separate searches for every different information type,
from Web sites to support groups.
To save everyone time and help unlock the growing richness and variety
of the medical Internet, HONselect integrates information from various
types of Internet databases onto a single interface. The result is a compact
smorgasbord of offerings, all on one page: relevant sites served up by HON's
own MedHunt, a sampling of pertinent medical images from HON's multimedia
gallery, journal articles from Medline and the latest related news stories.
Some users might find the tool a little demanding at first. It's built
on the 33,000+ Medical Subject Headings (MeSH) terminology, developed
by the National Library of Medicine in the U.S.A. This means you're
obliged to abide by a recognized scientific hierarchy of terms. However,
lay users should find this approach invigorating -- we designed HONselect
with them as well as medical professionals in mind. Taste the fare
(in English and French) at
Media clip -- The Lancet Interactive, "Websites in brief"
(Note: You'll have to register with The Lancet for free access to this article)
************* HONcode goes global
We published the HONcode in July, 1996, to meet growing demand by users
and developers of the medical Internet for a set of straightforward,
universal rules of good behaviour. Since then, it's become the sector's
leading reference for responsible self-regulation -- and uptake is
accelerating. There are some 3,000 actively subscribing sites,
including some of the biggest commercial telehealth "destinations"
in the U.S.A., leading hospitals, government agencies and for-profit and
not-for-profit organisations in over 35 countries. The HONcode, originally
in English, has been translated into 12 further languages: Chinese, Danish,
Finnish, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Polish, Portuguese, Russian,
Spanish and Swedish. It's in use in East and West Europe, Africa, Asia
and the Americas. In the month of March, 2000, the HONcode principles
were linked to 6,604 external servers and 26,006 external Web pages
and were viewed by 34,916 visitors.
Media clip -- PC World Magazine: "Is the Web Bad for Your Health?"
************* Feel like a cigarette?
Funny, you don't look like one. No, seriously, we'd like to help you
stop smoking. HON is proud to host Stop-Tabac, an interactive, not-for-
profit Web site that gently but persistently encourages you to quit.
More than 15,000 have participated in the programme. Fill in a simple
questionnaire and get regular free reports with personalized advice and
information to help you, step by step, towards your last puff.
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