Database of the Week: healthfinder.gov

Healthfinder.gov

healthfinder.gov is an award-winning Federal Web site for consumers, developed by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services together with other Federal agencies. Since 1997, healthfinder.gov has been recognized as a key resource for finding the best government and nonprofit health and human services information on the Internet. healthfinder.gov links to carefully selected information and Web sites from over 1,500 health-related organizations.

Healthfinder.gov is organized in an inviting interface with graphics, A-Z listings, and a “Spotlights” section. This month’s spotlight features IMMUNIZATIONS and resources include vaccines for pre-teens, prevention tips and recommended vaccines for children and adults.

This site also features a Health Library where you can browse for Topics or look through special resources such as medical dictionaries, monthly newsletters and journals. Topics range from Baby Bottle Tooth Decay to Vitiligo so chances are you’ll find information on your medical subject. Once you choose a topic, you can then choose from a list of articles with information on your topic. The articles are easily understood (not too much medical language) and most even have the option of reading it in Spanish.

With links to a Drug Interaction Checker, Online Checkups, Consumer Guides and an RSS feed for daily news updates, this resource is a must for current health information.

Linette Neal, Reference Librarian