Bollettino epidemiologico nazionalewww.epicentro.iss.it: The First 100 Days
Donato Greco, Laboratory of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Istituto Superiore di Sanità
An analysis of the initial utilization of the Italian-language epidemiology website known as Epicentro reveals several interesting findings. In the first 100 days of its operation (from October 10, 2001 to January 20, 2002, the site has been accessed by 6,100 new users, and more than 15,000 pages have been consulted.
The number of user visits and pages consulted has grown dramatically during the first 100 days, even during the recent Christmas holidays. The number of individuals consulting the site for the first time times increased 500%, from 632 during the month of October 2001 to more than 4,000 new users in January 2002 who viewed more than 11,000 pages.
The data suggest that the users are primarily professionals; most of the visits to the site occur during the work week and during working hours: 42% occurred between 8 AM and 1 PM, 39% between 1 PM and 6 PM, and the remainder during evening hours.
Epicentro, which is managed by the Laboratory of Epidemiology and Biostatistics of the Istituto Superiore di Sanità (ISS), is designed to provide a service to public health personnel in Italy. The site content has been designed and managed by researchers and other staff within the ISS with additional external journalistic and technical input. On a weekly basis, a summary of health events in the news as well as of new additions to the website is posted, allowing public health workers to remain up-to-date on happenings of interest. Indeed, the site is intended to be a lively and dynamic and to undergo continuing development and modifications. Recently, it has been further enriched by the addition of an extensive section on how to use the scientific literature and a detailed “map” of the epidemiologic and public health resources available in each of the country’s 21 regions.
One hundred days is too short a period to seriously evaluate the impact of the site. Nonetheless, the rapid increase in users suggests that future evaluations are warranted. We are also aware that there is still much to be done, and welcome comments and suggestions.
