And while nurses may be considered less Web-savvy than other professionals, there is a growing number of nurses who are addressing the need for better health information and services by designing their own Web sites. Mark Callaway, RN, started NursingNet.org to help nurses communicate with their peers. Since its inception six years ago, he has seen an increase in the number of nurses who visit his site. Karen Landeck, RN, an AIDS certified registered nurse, co-created HIVliving.org when she saw how difficult it was for HIV patients to access medical information on the Internet. Landeck s site uses sophisticated tools to allow patients to chart and graph their T-cells, viral load counts, and weight.
Users also can record their medical history and monitor medications they are taking.
Of course, not all health-related Web sites are operated by people with medical credentials. No Web presence can fully assess a condition without subjective and objective input.