Resource of the Week
By Shirl Kennedy, Deputy Editor
In the overall scheme of research-worthy content, up-to-date health statistics are valued highly. Gary mentioned a new site here about a week ago that I think deserves a closer look.
Health Statistics
Source: Kaiser Family Foundation (KFF) GlobalHealthFacts.org
"GlobalHealthFacts.org, a project of the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation, provides free, up-to-date and easy-to-access data by country on HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, malaria, and other key health and socio-economic indicators. The data are displayed in tables, charts, and color-coded maps and can be downloaded for custom analyses. GlobalHealthFacts.org is a companion site to GlobalHealthReporting.org, a project operated by the Foundation with major support from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation."
If nothing else, you have to love this site for its ultra-clean, user-friendly interface. Choose a country from the dropdown menu in the Data by Country box at the upper right and get statistics about people with AIDS, TB, malaria, and other related information in easy-to-read chart form. You can view "Notes and Sources" about any statistic by clicking a small link under the box containing that statistic, at the lower right. To compare a given statistic against data from all countries, simply click the small "Compare" icon at the upper right. Beneath the dropdown menu are links that will take you to regional data for HIV/AIDS, Malaria, or TB.
Get "fast facts" via the interactive world map at the top left. Clicking on a country generates immediate statistical data directly underneath the map. Small plus sign icons allow you to "zoom in" on a given geographic area. Underneath the map, you'll notice scrolling news headlines from GlobalHealthReporting.org. Click on a headline to read the story.
At the lower right is a Data by Topic box, which will take you to more detailed and varied statistics about HIV/AIDS; TB; Malaria; Other Diseases and Conditions (avian flu, SARS, yellow fever); Programs, Funding, & Financing (grant data and numbers of physicians, nurses, and midwives) ; and Demography & the Economy (population, women, population under age 15, urban population, land area).
If you look at the upper right-hand part of the page, you'll see three tabs. The first two are basically an alternate navigation scheme: Data by Country and Data by Topic. The third tab displays a variety of tools for you -- including raw data downloads, a full list of direct links to topics covered on the site, a glossary, and an e-mail sign-up link that takes you to a page of KFF subscription newsletters. By the way, you can save your favorite links here for future reference if you register (free) at the site.
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