A new information-sharing collaboration between NPS MedicineWise and Lab Tests Online Australasia means consumers and health professionals will have access to additional, reliable information on medical tests and conditions.

This initial pilot allows visitors to the NPS MedicineWise to benefit from Lab Tests Online-Au content about medical tests, while people browsing the Lab Tests Online-Au site will have access to NPS MedicineWise information about different medical conditions.

Content covers a set of highly-accessed medical test and condition pages, including C-reactive protein, liver function tests, full blood count, diabetes, pharyngitis, influenza and more, with more medical tests and conditions being added regularly.

NPS MedicineWise CEO Dr Lynn Weekes says that people are increasingly using the internet to search for evidence-based information about medicines, medical conditions and medical tests.

“While there is a lot of information on the internet about medical conditions and the medicines to treat them, it can be difficult to find information you can trust, which is why NPS MedicineWise and Lab Tests Online-Au are collaborating to provide independent, evidence-based and up-to-date information for consumers and health professionals alike,” says Dr Weekes.

“When looking for health information online, one medicinewise strategy is to use good, trustworthy sites that you can keep going back to rather than searching the entire internet. By linking the two websites and the relevant content, people can save time when looking for information on medical tests and conditions and also know that the information can be trusted.

“Importantly, even when using a trusted website we encourage people to discuss any information they find on the internet with their doctor or other health professional.”

Lab Tests Online-Au Chairman, Professor Leslie Burnett, explains that information on the website is prepared by practising pathologists and scientists.

“Many of our contributors are leaders in their specialties and they volunteer their time. Our aim is to explain pathology in plain language to help people understand the tests that are so vital to modern healthcare. We believe it is essential they have access to accurate, non-commercial and trustworthy information on the internet.

“By understanding the pathology of their illness we know that people are better equipped to have productive conversations with their doctors and health professionals and are better able to make informed decisions.”

For NPS MedicineWise information about medical tests visit http://www.nps.org.au/medical-tests

For Lab Tests Online-Au visit:  http://www.labtestsonline.org.au/