A new Harris Poll concludes that 60 million adults--68 percent of those who use the Internet--have used the World Wide Web to find health information. 91 percent of these online health seekers said that the last time they went online, they were able to fi nd the health information they wanted.  [ ... more]

Industry News: drkoop.com files to go public drkoop.com, the Austin-based health portal co-founded by Dr. C. Everett Koop and CEO Don Hackett, has filed to go public under the NASDAQ symbol "KOOP." Underwriters Bear Stearns, William Blair, and Wit Capital hope to raise $50 million.  [ ... more] Upcoming Meetings: Boston Cybermedicine Meeting May 5-7, 1999		Tools of the Trade: Ten rules for online health professionals I'm often asked to come in as a consultant to help hospital staff members and other groups of healthcare professionals "get up to speed" on online consumer health. These are some of the guidelines my clients have found most useful.  [ ... more] Feedback: Your Contributions to Our Next Issue We invite your input for future issues. We're especially interested in your suggestions for Sites 2B Seen, Recommended Reading, Industry News & Gossip, and your questions for Doctom's FAQ. We also welcome your criticisms, comments, love notes, death threats, wild ideas, unfounded rumors, rants, raves, and press releases.  [ ... more]

Looking for a good domain name for your consumer health site? Many of the best names are already taken. But a growing number of health-related domain names are becoming available from domain name brokers. Costs run from the price of dinner at a good resta urant to $100,000 or more. Here are some examples...  [ ... more]

Doctom's Virtual Journal:
"How to develop an online support group or Web site"
by Ed Madara
American Self-Help Clearinghouse

An excellent introductory guide for online self-helpers seeking to find or form a condition-specific online support community. A valuable read for health professionals seeking to learn more about the dynamics of online health.  [ ... more]

© Copyright 1999 Tom Ferguson, M.D. All rights reserved. Reproduction in any form without prior written permission is prohibited. ISSN 1520-5487. For active players in the online health revolution. doctom@doctom.com