Useful Links
NIH - Health Information
This Website gives easy-to-read, accurate descriptions of conditions, causes, symptoms, and treatments by linking to trusted Websites for specific information. For instance, someone looking up bone cancer would be linked to the bone cancer page on the National Cancer Institute Website. Lots of Spanish-language materials available here as well.
American Diabetes Association
Not only gives extensive information about diabetes, its treatments, and ongoing research, but it also offers patients advice on nutrition and meal planning, fitness regimes, and lifestyle changes, and connects them with support groups in their communities. Also check out the ADA-sponsored, interactive nutrition site – My Food Advisor – which allows patients to create meal plans, find recipes, and research foods they can eat.
Mayo Clinic
Offers extensive disease/condition information, and goes a step further with its comprehensive and helpful “Treatment Decisions” section, Q&A section called “Ask a Specialist,” and a plethora of interactive quizzes, self-assessments, and calculators under “Health Tools.”
Drugs.com
Patients can read about their prescriptions or research the various drugs available for their condition. This site provides an easy-to-use drug interactions checker, and an innovative pill identification wizard that allows patients to enter the shape, color, and imprint of their mystery pill and view photographs of potential matches to identify the medication.
MedlinePlus
This site offers patients information on wellness, diseases, drugs, and other health topics, this site has an extensive searchable medical encyclopedia with cool pictures and diagrams and a medical dictionary that gives spelling and pronunciation tips. It also offers health information in more than 40 languages.
Cleveland Clinic
Provides well-organized information on diseases, treatments, procedures, drugs, and current research. What sets this site apart is its use of multimedia formats: check out the very cool interactive tools, video health talks, online health chats, podcasts, and webcasts.
Family Doctor
Sponsored by the American Academy of Family Physicians, this site presents broader information on the patient experience, not only offering information on conditions and treatments, but tips for patients on choosing a doctor, understanding medical bills, navigating insurance coverage, and advocating for themselves. Also provides helpful information on children’s health and development issues, from toilet training to dog bites to acne.
American Heart Association
The American Heart Association’s patient portal on heart disease supplies information, tools, videos, recipes, exercise tips, and expert advice for patients with heart disease and their families. Patients will dig Heart360, an interactive way to manage their heart health by tracking their medications, blood pressure, weight, exercise, and diet.
Medicare Benefits
If you’re approaching age 65, you’re likely waiting for your opportunity to join Medicare, the U.S. federal health insurance program. Many people consider this moment a milestone and wait to retire until they are eligible for this federal benefit, which helps with the cost of health care as your income shifts into a fixed state.