2007 OPEN FORUM Abstracts
COMPARISON OF RESPIRATORY THERAPY DEPARTMENT WEBSITES
V. Roberts1, M. Babic1, A. Cunningham1, M. Hoffman1, L. Kester1, J. Lavelle1, R. L. Chatburn1, J. K. Stoller2
In a world dominated by the internet, where 70% of adults in North America are connected, it is easy to see the value a website could have for a Respiratory Therapy (RT) department. Potential uses for a website include public and staff education, recruitment and news communication. The purpose of this study was to identify RT department websites at highly ranked hospitals and rate their content.
Methods: A list of hospital websites was compiled using US News and World Report’s list of “Best Hospitals” and a simple Google search. The top 20 hospitals ranked in respiratory disorders were selected. A total of 16 sites were evaluated (Table). Each site was rated by seven RT staff members using a set of ten content criteria:
1-Description of profession,
2-Description of department,
3-List of RT employees,
4-Employment opportunities,
5-Educational material,
6-Policies & procedures,
7-Department achievements/ history,
8-News,
9-RT links,
10-Overall look & feel.
The rating scale used was: 0-not available or poor, 1-adequate, 2-good.
Results: Scores ranged from 1.6 to 14.6 out of 20 possible points. Three sites of 16 achieved > 11 points and these highest ranking sites all offered, to some degree, elements of all the evaluation criteria. Notably, one site offered a virtual tour of the RT department, as well as several patient care areas.
Conclusions: Respiratory therapy websites have not applied internet capabilities to their fullest potential. Several leading sites provide excellent examples of what can be accomplished.
