Accessing Healthcare Information

Health applications are becoming more popular than ever. Downloading health applications on your smart phone or computer can help with staying healthy, exercising more, and eating well. You need to make sure the health app will provide you with accurate information about your health. Tips for finding the best health applications: 1. Do you need to pay for the app or is it free? Some applications might try to persuade you to download it just because it is free. Some of these apps will have a lot of ads associated with them and they will try to sell you things. Be cautious with free applications. 2. Who is the sponsor of the app/who makes the app? Make sure whoever made the app is a reliable source. Some reliable sources would be hospitals, government agencies, or nonprofit organizations. 3. Read the reviews! Most applications have customer reviews associated with them. Read these reviews and see what other people thought about the application. 4. Check for updates. ...

When finding a website for your needs, there are some concerns that you should have. You will need to make sure that each website follows HIPPA (Health Insurance Portability Accountability Act) standards, and that the information you provide is kept confidential. Sharing your concerns with various support groups is a great way to connect with people and gain support for different types of illnesses. Some support groups that I would recommend are followed: This is a website that allows patients with cancer to login and receive support and education about different types of cancer. As a patient, you and your family can get real-time education and help. Patient confidentiality is maintained and at the start of each session, you are reminded to be in a private area and only use your first name to keep your posts anonymous. https://my.mskcc.org/login This is a Facebook page called Diabetes Support. If you have a diagnosis of diabetes, this could be a good support syst...

            There are many benefits of creating your own personal health records. Some benefits include being able to have full access to your health records, being involved in your care, and having faster communication between providers and patients. Different hospitals and healthcare facilities use various types of ways for patients to see their health records. Some use applications, and some have websites for patients. Ask questions when you go in for your check-ups and make sure you know what you could have access to.                   Patient portals are a way for patients to access their own health information. They can see laboratory results, test reviews, and results in their portals. As a patient, make sure you are always in a private environment while accessing your portal. It is also important to make sure you are on a secure Wi-Fi network so that no one can gain access t...

     As a patient checking and updating your health information online, it is important to make sure that your information stays safe. There are a few ways to do this. Depending where you are accessing your information, provided are a few tips to make sure your information stays safe.                  Make sure your service provider has firewalls downloaded to keep your information safe. A firewall is essentially a barrier that blocks your computer from spam. Installing a free firewall is a good idea if you will be looking up sensitive information on your computer. Here is a website for more information about firewalls: http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/free-firewalls-windows/ There are a few ways to tell if a website is secure. These include:     1.    Always make sure the website starts with https://      2.  When you are directed to a new website, m...