March 3, 2000
(Health and Community Services)

Healthy Newfoundland and Labrador Better Information: Better Health

Roger Grimes, Minister of Health and Community Services, announced the launch of Healthy Newfoundland and Labrador, a web site of consumer health information available in the province. The site is found at //healthy.nf.ca.

"When people have access to quality information," said Minister Grimes, "they are better able to participate in decision-making that affects their health. There are excellent resources available in this province from many different sources which can be the basis for helping people to understand and manage their, or their family's, health."

Healthy Newfoundland and Labrador consolidates the considerable number of health information sources in the province into a database that can be searched by topic and region. The resources, ranging from pamphlets to support groups, are available through hospitals, libraries, Health and Community Services offices, associations, and community groups. The Consumer Health Information Project was designed and developed by a steering committee of health librarians and other interested groups, and managed by the Newfoundland and Labrador Centre for Health Information (NLCHI). The cost of the one-year project was $82,961, which includes funding of $40,250 from Health Canada's Health Infostrucutre Support Program and $22,000 from the Department of Health and Community Services

"Healthy Newfoundland and Labrador uses the technology of the Internet to help people find a range of information about topics of interest to them and their families," explained Dr. Doreen Neville, CEO of NLCHI. "For example, if you are concerned about health disease the web site will identify information about prevention, treatment and rehabilitation sources."

The web site contains close to 400 sources of information in the province, from the A.L.S. (Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis) Society of Newfoundland to the Women's Health Network. The site also links to over 300 other health web sites. The information available at the listed organizations is free, or available for a minimal charge, and most of the services do not require a referral from a service provider.

"This project supports the work of the Strategic Social Plan, particularly in its goal to create healthy educated citizens living in safe communities," said Moyra Buchan. Ms Buchan is executive director of the Canadian Mental Health Association - Newfoundland and Labrador, a member of the Premier's Council on Social Development and the lead applicant for federal funding for the Advisory Committee on Consumer Health Information.

For more information contact:

Or visit //healthy.nf.ca

Healthy Newfoundland and Labrador includes consumer friendly information about health promotion and preventive medicine, as well as information on the symptoms, diagnoses and treatments of diseases, disorders and injuries.

In defining consumer health, the focus has been on the medical rather than social determinants of health, such as employment or education level. The Community Services Council provides this broader referral service.

The web site lists sources of health information generally accessible to the Newfoundland and Labrador public without referral, and are free or have a minimal fee for photocopying, lending, or participating in a support group.

Posters promoting this site have been widely distributed throughout the province. Printed copies of the information are being sent to libraries, and health and school boards.

This is the most comprehensive source of health organizations ever developed in the province.

Healthy Newfoundland and Labrador was designed and coordinated by Wendy Rodgers.

The Consumer Health Information Project was proposed to the Newfoundland and Labrador Centre for Health Information (NLCHI) by the Steering Committee for Consumer Health Information, a group of health librarians. The group was expanded to include Canadian Mental Health Association, Newfoundland and Labrador Division, NLCHI and the Department of Health and Community Services and became the Advisory Group on Consumer Health.

The Canadian Mental Health Association, Newfoundland and Labrador Division and NLCHI received one-year funding through the Health Infostructure Support Program of Health Canada to develop the web site.

//healthy.nf.ca and its accompanying printed directory would not have been possible without the support of the following programs, organizations and individuals.

2000 03 03                                                             1:40 p.m.