Evaluating a Website for Credibility

Evaluating a Website for Credibility

Introduction

As the internet is a vast network, all kinds of knowledge are easy accessible. However, the sources utilized are not always authentic and they might e providing inappropriate information. Credibility is the process that utilizes the procedure necessary to find out the reliability and credibility of the websites (Fitzpatrick, 2007). It holds key importance in the nursing profession as these healthcare experts greatly depends on reliable and credible sources for learning. The credible websites ensure evidence-based practice is employed, which is an essential element of the nursing practice.

Center of disease control and prevention is the government healthcare business of the United States of America. The primary goal of center of disease control and prevention (CDC) is the disease prevention, treatment and promotion of health in the general public. The official website of the institute is named as “Center Of Disease Control And Prevention”. This website is a reflection of all the actions and information is provided by the center of disease control and prevention. The website has been searched through the Google search engine (www.google.as). The domain name of the website is identified to be “.gov”, which, according to the domain name system, is the top sponsored top level domain. This domain name represents that the website is by the government, and its utilization in terms of uploading information is strictly confined to government. The rationale behind the selection of this website is that this is the official website by the United States government and is used as one of the most credible sources, to obtain data related to healthcare. The web address or the URL of the website is www.cdc.gov.

This assignment aims to find out the reliability of the official website of center of disease control and prevention. It also explains the utilization of the information by nursing professionals and the importance of evaluation of websites for credibility in the nursing profession.

Discussion

Analysis of the Website

Authority

The entire authority of the uploading of information, integration and availability of the data and maintenance of website lies in the hand of the government agency “center of disease control and prevention”. The government, therefore, holds every right of the website without involvement of any other entity.

Information

The information that is available on the CDC website comes from reliable stakeholders and agencies, and the credibility of the published information is checked before uploading. The website holds credible resources, which cannot be challenged (Peter, 2004).

Objectivity

The primary purpose of the website is to provide individuals with the necessary information, the center of disease control and prevention wishes to deliver. The main mission of the agency is to convey the information regarding prevention and treatment of diseases, promotion of better quality of life, identification of new healthcare threats and evaluating the causes of morbidity and mortality in the population, through a web based system (CDC, 2013). The objectivity of the website is meeting the requirement.

Ease of Navigation

The website is user friendly, with an ease of navigation (Bar-Yam, ...