Resources

Topic: Health Indicators Warehouse
Site URL: http://healthindicators.gov
Site Review:

Health Indicators Warehouse is designed for users to access data relating to national, state, and local health. Data is provided in multiple ways to facilitate ease of readability. Additionally, the site links to evidence-based interventions.

To access information on the website, the user can select topic areas from the drop down boxes under topic, geography, or initiative. Navigation requires knowing exactly what type of data you want as an end product. The website also caters to people in public, medical, or research professions by using specific terminology. 

Recommended Use for Public Health Messaging

This is a great resource tool to get data and be linked to evidence-based research for the public professional. The data obtained from this website can further enhance public health messaging by putting numbers to related messages such as the number of poisoning deaths of adults between the ages of 35-54 for example. Another example is unintended deaths of infants, this can be used with Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) campaign messages. In all, this is way professionals can get linked to updated data without having to search multiple sites. 

Similar Resources

VitalStats: [http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/VitalStats.htm
CDC Wonder: [http://wonder.cdc.gov/DATA2010/]

QR Code Generators

Topic: QRPhoria
Tool Site: http://qrphoria.com/

Review of QRPhoria:

QR Codes allow for transmission of data from print to digital. This can be done either by clicking on a code or using a bar code reader/scanner via a smartphone to scan a code and be transported to a multiple of different areas including websites, a contest, coupon, or video. 

QRPhoria is one type of code generator tool that allows a user to create a code for the above purpose. QRPhoria is simple, quick, and requires no registration to get started. Simply go the website with an idea of what you want to link to. Next, go through the left scroll bar to pick your data type from a long list including twitter, facebook, business card, itunes, or URL. Provide the link, style, color, and encode. The save feature allows you to save it to your computer to be used at a later time. 

Recommended Use for Public Health Messaging: 

QR code generators can be utilized in public health for either linking to pertinent websites or provide contact information. An immediate standout use would be with provide presentations. Most phones have the ability to read QR codes and by providing this features shows the audience that public health is not only keeping up with trends but utilizing them to their best advantage. This in turn will provide the audience a quick and easy way to capture data. 

Scan below to be linked to my website: Protect Yourself Against HPV

Other QR Code Generators:

SnapVu [http://snap.vu/]

FancyQRCode [http://www.fancyqrcode.com/]

Feed Readers

Topic: Feedspot
Topic Site: http://www.feedspot.com

Feed Reader:	Feedspot
Is it easy to use/understand	Yes, The sidebar offers suggestions and a website tool show you what the site features are. Additionally there is a getting started section, which goes through the sites functions.
Does it have a search feature?	At the top left hand corner is a search tool. Users can search various topics and get results regarding the top feeds available for this topic
Can you categorize/organize your feeds?	The site allows you to create folders and group various feeds based on whatever preference the user sets
Is it easy to add feeds to this reader?	You can add by doing a search of a site, enter a URL, import form other feeders, or utilize the site’s catalog on various topics of interest
How does it Look?	It is very basic and at least the free access does not allow for customization of how the feeder appears.
Favorite things about this Feed Reader	Quick access to various feeds, able to group, can share on social media sites easily
Negative things about this Feed Reader	Unable to customize; had to sign up – did not offer sign up via Google, Twitter, or Facebook
What three feeds did you sign up?	1. Discovery News 2. Linked 2           Leadership 3. CNN.com-World

Other Feeder Sites:
News Blur [http://www.newsblur.com/]

Feedly [http://cloud.feedly.com/#welcome]

Discovery Engines

TOPIC: yourversion

TOPIC SITE: http://www.yourversion.com/

Review of Tool/Site:

After glancing through multiple discovery engines, yourversion lured me in with the promise of discovering content relevant to my preferences. Sign up is free. One can link up via a Facebook or Twitter account. The site also has free apps for Ipad, Iphone, and Android increasing the accessibility of content. Youversion offers an easier way to locate and find information on the internet. Through topic interests the web is searched and content is located and put in one place. Content is found through multiple sources such as blogs, webpages, videos, or products. The user can also specify where yourversion should look. A user can share information gained, bookmark pages, or simply continue to look up more information.

As good as all of the above sounded. Signing up with Twitter was difficulty and did not work for me. Also the topics were pretty broad and felt that I needed to be extremely specific when looking for information. 

Recommended use for public health messaging: 

Although the topics found/located sometimes were not specifically what was wanted, Public health officials can utilize this tool to search in one location without having to go out and search all different sites. This can help to make research projects or health messaging research faster and more efficient. Additionally, the share button can then be used to quickly share information with others via social media. 

Other Discovery Engines:
Utopic [http://utopic.me/]
Curate Me [http://www.curate.me/]

Word Clouds

Topic: Tagul (http://tagul.com)

Review: Tagul is an online tool that allows users to create bright and colorful messages with words and shapes. These words then links into a user specified "tag" source (i.e. Google; personal websites) for more information on the word topic. 

Tagul is free to use but does require signing up to use and save the word clouds. However, Tagul allows users to use an exiting media service such as Facebook, Google, or twitter to sign up making sign up that much easier. After that it is just a few clicks until you have your word cloud. One thing to make sure is the more you want a word to be focused then you have to type that word in multiple times. 

Recommended use for public health messaging: 

Public health professionals can utilize Tagul to introduce health messages in a more creative and interactive way. Different shapes can be used to depict different meanings, such as the shape of the United States, public health logos, or animal shapes. This creates a striking visual urging users to interact with the image. Public health professionals can then use the tags to encourage viewers to click and view  link to important public health information, encouraging users to view 

Below is an example taken from Tagul's website. As you can see the words create a picture banking the visual more striking. 

Similar Widget Sites:

Wordle [http://www.wordle.net/]

Tagxedo [www.tagxedo.com]