New Encyclopedia Written by Health Professionals
Medpedia Aims to be the World's Most Comprehensive Resource
Medpedia was launched into public beta in February 2009 with over 7000 pages of content written by medical professionals. The medical encyclopedia website is a collaboration between Harvard Medical School, Stanford School of Medicine, Berkeley School of Public Health, and other health organizations around the world.
The website has the look and feel of Wikipedia, however, the site is maintained in a more controlled and scholarly fashion. Only physicians and those with a PhD can contribute to the site once they have been approved. Although regular users cannot write articles for the site, users who create a Medpedia account can make suggestions to the articles. They can also participate in “Communities of Interest” where they can discuss and share with physicians about medical information and advice.
Articles already on the site vary by topic, ranging anywhere from Acute Appendicitis to Zinc. Certain articles have two versions – a “Plain English” one which is written at a high school level that is easy to understand and a “Clinical” version which is written for those in the medical field.
Similar to Wikipedia, several Medpedia articles provide a table of contents made of hyperlinks to different sections of the article. Medpedia also has a link at the top of every article showing a timeline of how the article has been updated with references or edits. There is also an article discussion link, but it appears to be for Editors only.
A Website Everyone Can Trust
Wikipedia has for a long time been criticized by professors and academic institutions for its credibility. Unlike Medpedia, anyone who visits Wikipedia can edit an article anonymously, leaving visitors to the site guessing whether or not they can trust the data. Wikipedia is no stranger to inaccurate information, and weeks or months can go by before an error is amended on any given article.
Medpedia seeks to reassure students and professionals who have been told to avoid websites like Wikipedia that this new collaborative website is a scholarly resource that can be trusted and used by everyone. When writing articles editors are instructed to avoid all conflicts of interest, whether through financial or personal affiliations, and that their activity on the site is monitored.
Medpedia's Limitations
At the moment, there are a few drawbacks to the new website and its features. Firstly, since it is still in beta it can experience a few hiccups in performance and its database is quite limited. There is also the language barrier which can dissuade many visitors since all content thus far is in English only. This is one of Wikipedia's greatest accomplishments since there are millions of articles in different languages.
Users of Medpedia may also feel excluded from the social network since they cannot directly contribute to the site's content. Social networking sites and user-generated content are popular today because they allow people to engage with the Internet and feel a sense of belonging. With Medpedia's PhD-only policy, undergrad students and nurses may feel that their contributions to the site may be overlooked. If Wikipedia is any indication of success for online social networking, then Medpedia must involve average users more to keep them coming back. On the other hand, people like undergrad students and nurses could benefit from Medpedia by networking with professionals through the website's Professional Directory.
Overall, Medpedia promises to be an evolutionary resource with continued support from hundreds of organizations around the world. Medpedia is currently planning to update the site with forums, Ask an Expert section, and links to recommended blogs. The beta looks promising so far and has the potential to be the go-to website for quick and reliable health information.
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