About Health On the Net (HON): Mission & Users

is to guide the growing community of healthcare consumers and providers on the World Wide Web to sound, reliable medical information and expertise. In this way, HON seeks to contribute to better, more accessible and cost-effective health care.

Quality assessment has been our concern since the beginning. We recognise the need for systematic and stringent peer review. We have led international efforts to improve the quality of medical information on the Internet, notably through the HON Code of Conduct [] (HONcode©) for healthcare site developers. This remains a HON priority.

Care providers and medical students are making increasing use of the wealth of medical multimedia available on the Web. Keeping up-to-date with medical progress has never been easier. Access to online discussions, career networking and Web site hosting services has opened new horizons for physicians, nurses and all other healthcare professions. HON works to develop effective telemedicine through cross-border work in R&D projects. And to encourage more medical professionals to use the Internet, we also provide a complete international conference schedule and detailed listings of medical resources on the Internet, including all known hospital Web sites. More importantly, HON's MedHunt© [] and HONselect© [] offer all users the best-available Web sites and support groups, medical images and terminology, journal articles and news.

Ordinary citizens are pouring into the Internet in growing numbers to find answers to a vast array of healthcare questions. Many patients find help, encouragement and cost-effective counselling from on-line support communities, thus overcoming isolation, improving their morale and, often, developing useful teleworking skills. Medicine's move into the Web is unstoppable. As patients gain easy access to more and more medical information, they are seeking to become more involved in decisions about their health. This trend has started to alter traditional doctor-patient relationships. However good it is, online information cannot replace the vital personal relationship between patients and their doctors. But it can make for more knowledgeable patients, physicians, nurses and other medical care providers. As we come to understand and act on this, the health benefits will be palpable.