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Educating Medical Students to Evaluate the Quality of Health Information on the Web

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The Philosophy of Information Quality

Part of the book series: Synthese Library ((SYLI,volume 358))

Abstract

Google and googling pose an array of challenges for information professionals. The Google search engine deskills information literacy, so that many people can find some information. Yet the great challenge is knowing what we do not know. We cannot put words into Google that we do not know. Therefore the instruments for diagnosis are blunt and brutal. The field of e-health has great possibilities, yet the lack of information literacy undermines the expertise of professionals and creates misinformation and confusion. This chapter analyzes the means of assessing the quality of health information and describes an approach to improve the ability of medical students to navigate through the various health information available and to critically evaluate a research publication. Improving Internet literacy is required not only to meet the standards for medical education but also to prepare future doctors to deal with patients exposed to an information overload.

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Acknowledgements

We thank Nikoo Aziminia for giving her permission to quote part of her essay.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Division of Clinical and Laboratory Investigation, Brighton & Sussex Medical School, Falmer, BN19RY, UK

    Pietro Ghezzi & Sundeep Chumber

  2. School of Teacher Education, Charles Sturt University, Bathurst, NSW, 2795, Australia

    Tara Brabazon

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  1. Pietro Ghezzi
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  2. Sundeep Chumber
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  3. Tara Brabazon
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Correspondence to Pietro Ghezzi .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Oxford Internet Institute, University of Oxford, Oxford, Oxfordshire, UK

    Luciano Floridi

  2. Department of Science and Technology Studies, University College London, London, UK

    Phyllis Illari

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Ghezzi, P., Chumber, S., Brabazon, T. (2014). Educating Medical Students to Evaluate the Quality of Health Information on the Web. In: Floridi, L., Illari, P. (eds) The Philosophy of Information Quality. Synthese Library, vol 358. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-07121-3_10

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