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Improving online health information for low-literacy and mobile device website visitors
To maximize accessibility and impact of its health content, NIDDK is integrating program-level sites into www.niddk.nih.gov. NIDDK used website data, Google analytics, and publication data to determine which content to improve and integrate first. A team developed and tested wireframes with the general public. Information architecture improvements include new landing pages and content organized the way people search for health information.
NIDDK also improved the content itself for certain health topics. This involved creating “bites” of content, which together form a “snack.” The in-depth “meal” content was rewritten using plain language and web writing best practices. For the initial pilot, 12 topics were improved.
In the first month of tracking, page views per visit to the improved topics increased by 90%. Analytics show promise for the new health information pages, where people are navigating as intended. NIDDK is in the process of integrating its other websites and making additional navigation and content improvements.
Learning Areas:
Implementation of health education strategies, interventions and programsPlanning of health education strategies, interventions, and programs
Learning Objectives:
Identify ways to make health information easier to read and navigate for low literacy audiences and mobile device viewers
Describe the bite, snack, meal approach to web writing
Explain criteria that can be used to determine which content is most popular to set priorities and improve website information architecture
Keyword(s): Health Literacy, Internet
Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: I have seven years of experience developing communication strategies for federal health information and serve as the content strategist for this effort. I worked closely with an information architect to conduct content analysis, usability testing, and creation of new web pages. I also managed the writing and editing of the improved content topics.
Any relevant financial relationships? Yes
| Name of Organization | Clinical/Research Area | Type of relationship |
|---|---|---|
| Sapient Government Services | N/A | Consultant |
I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines, and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed in my presentation.