More people are going online for health information than ever before. And more health information and services are moving to the Web. At the same time, we know that 9 out of 10 adults in the United States have limited health literacy skills.
So how do we help people with limited health literacy skills find and use health information on the Web? And how do we make Web sites easier to use for the millions of older adults who are going online for health information for the first time?
For answers to these questions and more, the CommunicateHealth team enthusiastically recommends this research-based guide to writing and designing user-friendly health Web sites from the US Department of Health and Human Services. (Yeah, okay – we helped write it.)
The guide is full of examples, tips, and tested strategies to help you write and design health Web sites that are easier for your Web users to understand. The 6 strategies described in the guide are:
- Learn about your users and their goals.
- Write actionable content.
- Display content clearly on the page.
- Organize content and simplify navigation.
- Engage users with interactive content.
- Evaluate and revise your site.
Are you using these strategies to improve your organization’s Web site? If not, let us know — we can help!
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