“Just Google it” is a phrase commonly expressed in today’s society. Technology, particularly the Internet, has made it relatively easy to quickly search and read on any given topic of interest. A common topic of interest held amongst the general public is health. In any situation in which a person is feeling ill, or wanting to simply make lifestyle changes, they often turn to the internet in an effort to research what things are “healthy”, or what the symptoms they are experiencing during an illness may mean. However, there are many instances in which the resources, or websites, used are not completely reliable. When evaluating a website, it is important to look at five main criteria: authority, accuracy, objectivity, currency, and coverage. …show more content…
Established in 1866, the Mayo Clinic is “one of the most well-known medical institutions in the world” (Helmers, 2016). With locations in numerous within the United States, Mayo Clinic is a common name when thinking about medical information and care. Under the subcategory of “Adult Health” within the website are also numerous articles, topics of discussion, and general information written by Mayo Clinic staff and other experts (Mayo Clinic, 2017). The website also provides you with information about the Mayo Clinic itself, as well as information about the authors writing the articles. All of these components within the website work together to not only provide the website’s authority, but also contribute to the website’s …show more content…
The website is not objective, or biased, because it covers a wide scope of medical information across a multitude of ailments, genders, ages, and issues. Within the webpage concerning general adult health, the reader is able to narrow down their research based on gender, illness, and concern (Mayo Clinic, 2017). The fact that anyone is capable of researching any topic pertaining to their individual health, provided with supplemental sources and research, provides a wide range of objectivity within the site. The Mayo Clinic also has locations in numerous states across the U.S., making the issues it researches and the information it shares, diverse and not focused on only one location or type of population (Helmers, 2016). In conjunction with authority and accuracy, objectivity is the final key to making the Mayo Clinic website a credible source for a wide variety of