Finding medical information can be easy if you take advantage of the various online healthcare database solutions. There are many health care services databases, but not all of them are from trustworthy sources. It can take some work to determine if a website is reputable or if a medical database can be trusted, but there are some out there. If you want to find a database for healthcare information that you can trust, this guide will show you what to look for and provide you with some reliable resources.

Here are a few things to keep in mind when examining or using health care databases:

1. An online medical database can generally be trusted when it comes to basic health information.
2. Healthcare decision support systems databases are useful for researching your doctor or local hospital.
3. Healthcare database solutions that focus on information to promote workplace safety are usually reliable and useful in helping to keep your workers healthy.

Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Use healthcare reference databases to find information on health issues and medical conditions

If you are looking for reputable information on diseases or drugs, or want to research a medical condition, there are many healthcare reference databases to choose from, but first you must know where to find them.

I recommend: The National Library of Medicine has put together a collection of reputable healthcare databases intended for the general public called Medline Plus. Here you can look for information on medical conditions your employees might be facing, check out drugs and supplements, and look up terms you might not understand in a medical dictionary. For more advanced information, check out the same healthcare research database your doctor probably uses, Pubmed. In the Pubmed medical database you will find articles from medical and nursing journals, and learn the latest treatment options for various diseases.

Find a doctor or hospital in a healthcare research database before entrusting them with your health

There are some healthcare informational databases that will help you determine if your doctor or hospital is somebody you can trust.

I recommend: The American Medical Association has set up a healthcare research database called DoctorFinder that lets you see a physician's age, education, and specialty. The online medical database for Medicare also has a healthcare professional directory that not only includes doctors, but also lists nurse practitioners, psychologists, and other healthcare professionals. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has a hospital comparison tool that provides information on how hospitals are succeeding with various quality measures.

Make sure your work environment is safe by exploring some databases in healthcare prevention

There are various healthcare informational databases available that will let you see if seemingly harmless chemicals in your environment have known side effects that could put your health at risk. You may be able to prevent problems before they occur by checking out some of these health care databases.

I recommend: Tox Town lets you explore various settings, types of businesses, and determine if a work environment could be the cause of any health issues affecting your workers. The Household Products Database lists products you may have in your office or workplace, and provides details on any problems they may cause. This healthcare database also contains contact information for manufacturers, in case you need more information.

Tips & Tactics

Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide

• •  If you don't recognize the name of the organization behind a healthcare database, look for a 'Who We Are' or 'About Us' section. Most organizations will supply some background information about themselves which can give you an idea if they are reputable or not.
• •  Look out for health care databases that are trying to sell you something. They may be reputable, but they also may be biased with their information as a tactic to sell you their product.